DEUTERONOMY 4
<050405>Deuteronomy 4:5-14
5. Behold, I have taught you statutes and judgments, even as the Lord my God commanded me, that ye should do so in the land whither ye go to possess it. | 5. Videte, docui vos statuta et judicia, sicut praecepit mihi Jehova Deus mens, ut sic faciatis in medio terrae, ad quam vos ingredimini ut possideatis eam. |
6. Keep therefore, and do them: for this is your wisdom and your understanding in the sight of the nations, which shall hear all these statutes, and say, surely this great nation is a wise and understanding people. | 6. Custodietis itaque, et facietis: quia haec est sapientia vestra et intelligentia vestra coram populis: qui dum audierint omnia statuta haec, dicent, Certe populus hic sapiens et intelligens est gens haec magna. |
7. For what nation is there so great, who hath God so nigh unto them, as the Lord our God is in all things that we call upon him for? | 7. Quae enim gens tam magna est cui sic appropinquent dii, sicut Jehova Deus noster in quibuscunque invocamus eum? |
8. And what nation is there so great, that hath statutes and judgments so righteous as all this law, which I set before you this day? | 8. Et quae gens est tam magna cui sint statuta et judicia justa, sicut est universa haec lex, quam ego proporno hodie coram oculis vestris? |
9. Only take heed to thyself, and keep thy soul diligently, lest thou forget the things which thine eyes have seen, and lest they depart from thy heart all the days of thy life; but teach them thy sons, and thy sons’ sons: | 9. Veruntamen cave tibi, et custodi animam tuam sollicite, ne obliviscaris rerum quas viderunt oculi tui, neve recedant e corde tuo cunctis diebus vitro tuae, et doceas ea filios tuos et filios filiorum tuorum. |
10. Specially the day that thou stoodest before the Lord thy God in Horeb, when the Lord said unto me, Gather me the people together, and I will make them hear my words, that they may learn to fear me all the days that they shall live upon the earth, and that they may teach their children. | 10. Die quo stetisti coram Jehova Deo tuo in Horeb, quum diceret Jehova mihi, Congrega mihi populum, ut recenseam illis verba mea, quae discent, ut timeant me omnibus diebus quibus vixerint super terram, et filios suos doceant. |
11. And ye came near, and stood under the mountain; and the mountain burned with fire unto the midst of heaven, with darkness, clouds, and thick darkness. | 11. Itaque accessistis, et stetistis sub monte: (mons autem ille ardebat igni usque ad medium coeli, tenebrae, nubes, et caligo.) |
12. And the Lord spake unto you out of the midst of the fire: ye heard the voice of the words, but saw no similitude; only ye heard a voice. | 12. Et loquutus est Jehova ad vose medio ignis: vocem verborum vos audiebatis, at imaginem ullam non videbatis praeter vocem. |
13. And he declared unto you his covenant, which he commanded you to perform, even ten commandments; and he wrote them upon two tables of stone. | 13. Et renuntiavit vobis pactum suum quod praecepit vobis, ut faceretis, decem verba, et scripsit illa in duabus tabulis lapideis. |
14. And the Lord commanded me at that time to teach you statutes and judgments, that ye might do them in the land whither ye go over to possess it. | 14. Mihi quoque praecepit Jehova eodem tempore ut docerem vos statuta et indicia, ut faceretis ea in terra ad quam transitis ut possideatis eam. |
Deuteronomy 4:6 Keep therefore, and do them. In order that they may set themselves more cheerfully about the keeping of the Law, and may proceed more steadily in this endeavor, he reminds them that nothing is better or more desirable for themselves. For God is not duly honored, except with ready minds and volutary obedience, to which we are rather attracted by pleasure than forced by rigor and violence. Now, since all desire to excel, he says, that this is the chief excellence of Israel, that they have God for their Lawgiver and Master. If any object that what he says may be refuted by two arguments, namely, because the Law of God was unknown to heathen nations; and because the form of God’s worship prescribed in it, and the whole Jewish religion, was not only despised but hated by them; I reply, that other nations are not here absolutely stated to be the judges or arbitrators, but that the words must be thus understood, viz., that there will be no nation, if it should come to a right understanding, which will dare to compare itself, much less to prefer itself to you; for by the very comparison it will acknowledge to what a height of dignity God has raised you. Wherefore, although the doctrine of the Law should remain neglected, nay, detested, by almost all the world, still Moses with truth declares, that since God has deigned to deliver to the Jews a rule of life, a stage had been erected before other nations, whereon the nobility of that one people would be conspicuous. For it was unreasonable that the glory of God should be tarnished or extinguished by the ignorance of the blind. But we gather from this passage that we then are truly wise, when we depend on God’s words, and submit our feeling to His revelations. Where I have rendered the words, “Surely (certo) this people,” the Hebrew particle, qr, 1 rak, is used, which is often applied in an exclusive sense, so that it would appropriately bear this meaning: “Only this people,” etc. Unquestionably, the eminent condition of the people, on account of their gracious privileges, is referred to.
Deuteronomy 4:7 For what nation is there so great? Moses now repeats in his own name what he had stated in the person of others, as if to shew by additional reasons, that not without cause would the Jews be celebrated in the whole world, because it would actually appear that none were equal to them. He mentions two points, first, because God would be ready to afford them help, as often as they call upon Him; secondly, because He had instructed them in perfect righteousness, beyond which nothing could be desired; for, when he says that God is “nigh unto them,” I refer it to the presence of His power, which had been abundantly manifested by many miracles. Justly does he deny that the Gentiles had ever experienced such aid from their gods, since their prayers and cries were offered to deaf and dead idols.
Deuteronomy 4:9 Only take heed to thyself The same particle, qr, rak, of which I have just spoken, is used here, and its meaning in this place is, as if Moses had said, that this only remained; unless it is preferred to translate it nevertheless. What follows means literally “Guard (custodi) thyself, and guard thy soul;” wherein Moses advances by degrees, reminding them that they needed no common heedfulness, but that they must beware with extreme vigilance and diligence lest they should fail through the want of them; for the slothfulness of the flesh must be spurred on by such instigations as these, and at the same time our weakness must be fortified, and we must take measures against our unsteadfastness; for nothing is more easy than that all our zeal should suddenly be forgotten, or should gradually grow cold. God had established the certainty of His law, as far as was necessary, for the grateful and attentive, yet not without reason does He desire the people to remember how great is the carelessness of men. Nor does he command those only to remember who were eye-witnesses, but also to hand down (what they had seen) to their sons and grandsons, that the memory of such remarkable things might be preserved.
Deuteronomy 4:10 The day 2 that thou stoodest. The word day might be taken in the accusative, as if in apposition. It is, at any rate, clear that he explains more fully what he had briefly alluded to before, for he summons the people as eye-witnesses, lest, perchance, they should object that they were not sure from whence Moses had derived what he professes to be enjoined him by God. For they were all well aware that he had undertaken nothing without the express command of God. Finally, he proves, from the end and object itself of the doctrine, that God was its author, since it tended to nothing else but that God should be purely served, and that His people might be obedient, than which nothing can be imagined more just and right.
Deuteronomy 4:11 And ye came near, and stood. This explanatory narrative is intended to prove the same thing, viz., that Moses was only the ambassador and minister of God, because the mountain burned in the sight of all the people, that God might be manifested, speaking from the midst of the fire. His statement that they only heard the voice, but saw no similitude, may be understood as a kind of admission, (concessionis.) Thus the two clauses would be read adversatively, “Although no similitude appeared, yet a voice penetrated even to your ears.” But I conceive that this was expressly stated more clearly to shew that it was the voice of God, and not proceeding from a human being; for no man could have so concealed himself by artifice as to prevent himself from being seen to speak, whereas they beheld the voice come out of the fire without any external instrumentality.
<050432>Deuteronomy 4:32-40
32. For ask now of the days that are past, which were before thee, since the day that God created man upon the earth; and ask from the one side of heaven unto the other, whether there hath been any such thing as this great tiling is, or hath been heard like it? | 32. Interroga agedum de diebus antiquis, qui fuerunt ante re, ex quo die creavit Deus hominem super terram, et ab extremo coeli, usque ad extremum coeli, an acciderit unquam aliquid secundum hanc rem magnam, vel auditum fuerit simile. |
33. Did ever people hear the voice of God speaking out of the midst of the fire, as thou hast heard, and live? | 33. An audierit populus vocem Dei loquentis e medio ignis, sicut tu audisti, et fuerit superstes. |
34. Or hath God assayed to go and take him a nation from the midst of another nation, by temptations, by signs, and by wonders, and by war, and by a mighty hand, and by a stretchedout arm, and by great terrors, according to all that the Lord your God did for you in Egypt before your eyes? | 34. Vel an tentaverit Deus ut veniret ad gentem sibi assumendam e medio gentis, per probationes, signa et prodigia, praelia, manum fortem, brachium extentum, et visiones magnas, secundum omnia quae vobiscum egit Jehova Deus vester in Aegypto coram oculis vestris. |
35. Unto thee it was shewed, that thou mightest know that the Lord he is God; there is none else beside him. | 35. Tibi ostensum est ut cognosceres quod Jehova ipse est Dens, nec ullus praeter ipsum. |
36. Out of heaven he made thee to hear his voice, that he might instruct thee; and upon earth he shewed thee his great fire; and thou heardest his words out of the midst of the fire. | 36. E coelis audire to fecit vocem suam, ut erudiret to: et in terra ostendit tibi ignem suum magnum, et verba ejus audisti e medio ignis. |
37. And because he loved thy fathers, therefore he chose their seed after them, and brought thee out in his sight with his mighty power out of Egypt; | 37. Et quia dilexit patres tuos, elegit semen eorum post eos, et eduxit te coram facie sua, in virtute sua magna ex Egypto. |
38. To drive out nations from before thee greater and mightier than thou art, to bring thee in, to give thee their land for an inheritance, as it is this day. | 38. Ut expelleret gentes magnas a facie tua, et robustiores te, ac te introduceret ad dandam tibi terram earum in haereditatem, sicut dies haec demonstrat. |
39. Know therefore this day, and consider it in thine heart, that the Lord he is God in heaven above, and upon the earth beneath: there is none else. | 39. ltaque scito hodie, et reduc ad cor tuum, quod Jehova est Deus in coelis sursum, et super terram deorsum, nec alius ultra. |
40. Thou shalt keep therefore his statutes, and his commandments, which I command thee this day, that it may go well with thee, and with thy children after thee, and that thou mayest prolong thy days upon the earth, which the Lord thy God giveth thee, for ever. | 40. Proinde observabis statuta ejus, et praecepta ejus, quae mando tibi hodie, ut bene sit tibi et filiis tuis post te, utque prolonges dies super terram quam Jehova Deus tuus dat tibi omnibus diebus. |
Deuteronomy 4:32 For ask now. Moses here more forcibly extols and pronounces magnificent praises upon the miracles which he had before more simply related to have taken place at the promulgation of the Law, his object being to produce a fuller conviction of its dignity. He magnifies, too, by comparison, the testimonies whereby its authority had been ratified, viz., because nothing like it had ever occurred; for if any such instance had previously taken place, some portion of its preciousness or honor would have been taken from it. But since from the beginning of the world only one such illustrious manifestation of His power had been given by God, it afforded the greater sanction to the Law. He adds, too, that if they were to search over the whole world they would nowhere find anything similar. For I do not approve of the more refined exposition which some give of this clause, as if he said that all creatures above and below were witnesses that God’s might had never been manifested by so many and such illustrious miracles; as also the sense appears too restricted which others give, understanding “the days that are past” to mean annals or chronicles; for I make no question that Moses simply desires them to inquire and to examine whether from the creation of the world, or in any most remote region, any such thing had come to pass.
Deuteronomy 4:33 Did ever people hear? He points out more openly the greatness and extraordinary transcendency of the matter which he has just mentioned, viz., that they heard the voice of God speaking out of the fire. It is true, indeed, that the superstitions of the Gentiles had been confirmed of old by many apparitions, yet amongst the portents which wretched men have imagined for their willing self-deception, there is nothing approaching to this miracle. Many have individually lied, and their false and foolish tales have been rashly believed; but here we have not to do with unfounded and scattered rumors, nor with the dreams of some single person, but Moses produces more than 700,000 witnesses, to whom God’s glory had clearly and certainly appeared; he subjoins, therefore, that God had never assayed to do the same, but had afforded this solitary instance to render His Law illustrious in all ages. 3 Yet in this verse he not only alludes to the promulgation of the Law, but to the whole course of their deliverance, since he names in general His “temptations and signs.” He says that God “took him a nation from the midst of another nation,” for by His incomparable power He rescued the descendants of Abraham, who, though dispersed through Egypt, and, as it were, enclosed in its bowels, were yet an obscure and ignoble part of a most famous nation; whereof no similar example is to be found. 4
Deuteronomy 4:35 Unto thee it was shewed. He first says that God had so proved His divinity by miracles and prodigies, that the Israelites might know certainly that He was God. Whence, too, he concludes that He is the only God; for although God’s holy name be torn in pieces by various opinions, whilst each one manufactures his own gods for himself, yet is it still sure that the power and dominion of God cannot be withdrawn from Him, but reside in a single subject, as the logicians say. Therefore the essence of the one God overthrows and annihilates all the other deities which we foolishly invent for ourselves. And this we must carefully remark, for this has been the common error of all ages, to seek for a mixture of many gods, whereas all these imaginations should vanish before the brightness of the true God. In the following verse he confirms this declaration, because God instructed His people out of heaven, and in the fire. Is it, however, asked how these two points accord which seem to be opposed to each other, that God’s voice was heard from heaven and from the midst of the fire? I reply, that Moses simply means that the voice which flowed out of the fire into the people’s ears was distinguished by plain indications which proved it to be heavenly.
Deuteronomy 4:37 And because he loved. These words admit of two meanings; for the copulative conjunction stands at the beginning of the verse, — “And because he loved thy fathers,” and also before the next clause, “and he chose their seed;” the reasons here assigned might, therefore, be taken in connection with the previous sentence, viz., that so many miracles were wrought because God had chosen Abraham and his seed. Others understand it differently, that this people was honored with so many blessings by God because He loved their fathers. In this case they omit the copula in the middle of the verse, as must be often done. In the main, there is little discrepancy; for Moses desires to shew that whatever good things God has conferred upon His people are gratuitous, by which circumstance he commends God’s grace the more. He had said that by unusual favor this nation was taken from the midst of another; and he now adds that this was done on no other account but because God had embraced Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob with His love, and persevered in the same love towards their posterity. But we must remark that by the word “love” is expressed that favor which springs of mere generosity, so as to exclude all worthiness in the person beloved, as may be more clearly gathered from other passages, viz., Deuteronomy 7:8, and Psalm 78:68, and as is pretty plain from the context here, wherein he attributes the election of the people to the love with which God had honored their fathers. If any object that God’s election is eternal, the objection is readily solved, for the seed of Abraham was separated from all nations, because God had gratuitously adopted their father. We now understand the meaning of Moses, that the deliverance of the people was only to be ascribed to God’s goodness. He thus amplifies this blessing by another circumstance, viz., that God had preferred to great and mighty nations this ignoble people, whose own proper worthiness could not have acquired His favor.
Deuteronomy 4:39 Know therefore this day. He again inculcates what we have lately spoken of, that the glory of the one true God was proved by the miracles, but he does so by way of exhortation. For he desires them carefully and attentively to consider what God had shewn them, because in so plain a matter there would be no excuse for error or ignorance. He therefore infers from what had gone before, that the people must beware of shutting their eyes against the clear revelation of God’s power, and therefore urges them to keep it in memory, because man’s ingratitude is but too prone to forgetfulness. He afterwards reminds them wherefore God would be known, viz., that they might keep His Law and obey His statutes. The sum is, that they would be inexcusable if they did not obediently receive the Law, which they knew to have come from God; for they must needs be worse than stupid if the majesty of God, known and understood by so many proofs, did not awaken them to reverence. And lest they should undervalue the doctrine as proceeding from a mortal man, he expressly confesses, indeed, that he is the minister, and yet that he had set before them nothing which he had not received from God.
DEUTERONOMY 7
6. For thou art an holy people unto the Lord thy God: the Lord thy God hath chosen thee to be a special people unto himself— above all people that are upon the face of the earth. | 6. Nam populus sanctus es Jehovae Deo tuo: te elegit Jehova Deus tuus— ut sis illi populus peculiaris ex omnibus populis qui sunt in superficie terrae. |
7. The Lord did not set his love upon you— nor choose you— because ye were more in number than any people; (for ye were the fewest of all people;) | 7. Jehova— et elegit vos: (vos enim eratis pauciores omnibus populis.) |
8. But because the Lord loved you— and because he would keep the oath which he had sworn unto your fathers— hath the Lord brought you out with a mighty hand— and redeemed you out of the house of bond-men— from the hand of Pharaoh king of Egypt. | 8. Sed quia diligebat vos Jehova— et custodire volebat juramentum quod juraverat patribus vestris— eduxit vos Jehova in manu forti— et redemit vos e manu Pharaonis regis Aegypti. |
Deuteronomy 7:6 For thou art a holy people. He explains more distinctly what we have lately seen respecting God’s gratuitous love; for the comparison of the fewness of the people with the whole world and all nations, illustrates in no trifling degree the greatness of God’s grace; and this subject is considerably enlarged upon. Almost the same expressions will very soon be repeated, and also in the Song of Moses; but there by way of reproof, whilst here it is directed to a different object, as is plain from the context, viz., that they might be, by so great a blessing, laid under obligation to devote themselves and their services to God. He begins by declaring the end of their election, viz., that God had deigned to bestow this peculiar honor upon them that He might acquire unto Himself a holy people, pure from all pollutions, and then, by adding the circumstance I have adverted to, he magnifies the excellence of the benefit. From his argument drawn from their dignity, that they ought therefore to labor after holiness, we gather, that in proportion to the abundance of grace with which any one is endued, he is solemnly bound to live piously and justly. For God does not wish the gifts he bestows upon us to lie idle, but to produce their appropriate fruits; and we must especially remember that when He adopts us, and gathers us into His Church, we are not “called to uncleanness,” but to purity of life, and to shew forth the praises of him who hath called us out of darkness into his marvellous light.” (1 Thessalonians 4:7, and 1 Peter 2:9.) The Hebrew word hlgs, segullah, which we translate
“peculiaris,” special, some understand to mean a “treasure,” or a precious and desirable thing, as was stated on Exodus 19. Undoubtedly it appears from many passages that gold, silver, pearls, and the like, are designated by this word; but substantially it is agreed that this title is given to the elect people, because God delights Himself in them; and herein His incomparable goodness shines forth, that He so highly esteems such miserable and worthless creatures, (homunciones.) Hence, too, it appears that by His holy calling He, as it were, creates out of nothing “things which are not,” that they may excel every earthly being.
Deuteronomy 7:7 The Lord did not set his love upon you. He proves it to be of God’s gratuitous favor, that He has exalted them to such high honor, because He had passed over all other nations, and deigned to embrace them alone. For an equal distribution of God’s gifts generally casts obscurity upon them in our eyes; thus the light of the sun, our common food, and other things, which all equally enjoy, either lose their value, or, at any rate, do not obtain their due honor; whilst what is peculiar is more conspicuous. Moreover, Moses takes it for granted, that there was nothing naturally in the people to cause their condition to be better or more distinguished; and hence infers, that there was no other reason why God should choose them, except His mere choice of them. We have elsewhere observed, that by this His love, whatever men would bring of their own is excluded or annihilated. It follows, therefore, that the Israelites could never be sufficiently grateful to God, since they had been thus liberally dealt with by Him, without any desert of their own.
Deuteronomy 7:8 Because he would keep the oath. The love of God is here referred back from the children to the fathers; for he addressed the men of his own generation, when he said that they were therefore God’s treasure, because He loved them; now he adds that God had not just begun to love them for the first time, but that He had originally loved their fathers, when He chose to adopt Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. But although he more clearly proves that the descendants of Abraham had deserved nothing of the kind, because they are God’s peculiar people only by right of inheritance, still it must be remarked that God was induced to be kind to Abraham by no other cause than mere generosity. A little further on, therefore, he will say that those who then survived were dear to God, because He had already loved their fathers. But now he still further commends the goodness of God, because He had handed down His covenant from the fathers to the children, to shew that He is faithful and true to His promises. At the end of the verse, he teaches that the deliverance of the people was both an effect and a testimony of that grace.
DEUTERONOMY 10
<051014>Deuteronomy 10:14-17
14. Behold, the heaven, and the heaven of heavens, is the Lord’s thy God, the earth also, with all that therein is. | 14. Ecce, Jehovae Dei tui sunt coeli, et coeli coelorum, terra et omnia quae in ea sunt. |
15. Only the Lord had a delight in thy fathers to love them, and he chose their seed after them, even you above all people, as it is this day. | 15. Tantummodo in patribus tuis beneplacitum est Jehovae, ut diligeret eos: et elegit semen eorum post eos, nempe vos, ex omnibus populis, sicut hodie. |
16. Circumcise therefore the foreskin of your heart, and be no more stiff-necked. | 16. Circumcidite igitur praeputium cordis vestri, et cervicem vestram ne induretis ultra. |
17. For the Lord your God is God of gods, and Lord of lords, a great God, a mighty, and a terrible, which regardeth not persons, nor taketh reward. | 17. Jehova enim Deus vester est, Deus deorum, et Dominus dominorum, Deus magnus, potens et terribilis.- |
Deuteronomy 10:14 Behold the heaven. He again enforces upon them the grace, on account of which we have seen that the people were under obligation to God; because this was the most effectual observation for moving them to submit themselves to their deliverer, to whom they were reminded that they owed altogether themselves and all that they had. First, then, he admonishes them that they differed from others, not by their personal dignity, nor the excellency of their race, but because it pleased God to prefer them, when He ruled equally over all. Literally it is, “Jehovah coveted to love your fathers,” by which expression, as may be gathered from many passages, the feeling of inclination to love them is undoubtedly marked. Jerome, therefore, has not aptly used the word “adhere.” 5 Now, this desire, whereby God was freely and liberally induced, Moses opposes to all other causes, lest Israel should arrogate anything to themselves or their fathers. We must also remark the comparison between the less and the greater; for this was inestimable condescension, that he should in a manner pass by the heaven and earth with all their beauty and abundance, and set His heart upon a few obscure men. To this the limitation refers, that of all people He chose the seed of Abraham alone; for the word qr, rak, is here used exclusively, therefore, I have translated it “tantummodo,” only; unless it should be thought better to render it “But,” or “And yet.” The meaning, however, is clear, that God, having disregarded all the nations of the earth, had gratuitously adopted Abraham and his race. For he says that not only were their fathers loved, but all their descendants in their persons; since otherwise the exhortation which follows would not be suitable.
Deuteronomy 10:16 Circumcise, therefore. From this inference it appears wherefore mention was made of this adoption,. viz., that the Jews should more earnestly and solemnly serve God, whom they had known from experience to be so gracious. He requires, then, a reciprocal love; for nothing could be more base than not to testify their gratitude by a pious and righteous life. But, because men are by no means inclined or disposed to obey God, Moses exhorts them to self-renunciation, and to subdue and correct their carnal affections; for to circumcise the heart is equivalent to cleansing it from wicked lusts. Meanwhile, he reproves their former perverseness, when he desires them to be no more stiff-necked; as much as to say, that now at last they should put off that depravity of mind, wherein they had too long hardened themselves. We now perceive the design of Moses. He would have his fellow-Israelites submissive and obedient to God, who, by His great goodness, had furnished them with the motive. But, because hitherto they had repaid His kindnesses with ingratitude, at the same time, he enjoins them to amend their conduct. In the first clause, he alludes to the rite appointed by the Law; for circumcision is, as it were, the solemn consecration, whereby the children of Abraham were initiated unto the worship of God and true piety, and at the same time were separated from heathen nations, to be His holy and peculiar people; and they were to be admitted to this elementary rite in their infancy, that by its visible sign they might learn that the defilements of the flesh and the world were to be renounced. There were also other objects in circumcision, but here reference is only made to newness of life, or repentance (resipiscentia). Wherefore, the conclusion is, that since God had chosen them as His people, and by an external sign had devoted them to the cultivation of holiness, they ought sincerely and really to prove that they differed from heathen nations, and that they were circumcised in spirit, no less than in the flesh. For Paul declares, that they alone are truly Jews who are circumcised “inwardly,” as he says, and not those who only have to boast of “the letter” of circumcision. (Romans 2:28, 29.) Wherefore, the Prophets frequently taunt the transgressors of the Law by calling them uncircumcised, although they bore the visible sign in their flesh. In fine, when he desires to exhort them to sanctify themselves to God, he reasons from the nature and use of the sign, whereby they professed themselves to be His chosen people. In the second clause, there is an elegant metaphor, of frequent occurrence, taken from oxen; for, since the oxen which quietly offer their necks to the yoke are easily subdued to obedience, those are said to be “stiff-necked” (durae cervicis) which are fierce and obstinate in their nature.
Deuteronomy 10:17 For the Lord your God. Lest they should despise this teaching, he reminds them of God’s awful power; for the cause of contempt and negligence is, that the majesty of God does not always obtain its due reverence. Wherefore he inspires them with fear, to deter them from selfindulgence and indifference.
DEUTERONOMY 27
9. And Moses, and the priests the Levites, spake unto all Israel, saying, Take heed, and hearken, O Israel; This day thou art become the people of the Lord thy God. | 9. Et loquutus est Moses et sacerdotes Levitae ad omnem Israel, dicendo, Ausculta et audi Israel, hodie factus es in populum Jehovae Deo tuo. |
10. Thou shalt therefore obey the voice of the Lord thy God, and do his commandments and his statutes, which I command thee this day. The ground of his exhortation is again taken from the special favor of adoption, wherewith the God of Abraham had honored them; for there was nothing which should have more effectually stimulated them to obedience, than that more than paternal love, and the gratuitous kindness with which He had prevented them. Although, at the same time, they were admonished in these words of the object for which they were separated from other nations; for the conclusion he draws is, that because they were received by God as His people, they, therefore, lay under an obligation to keep His statutes; as Paul more plainly teaches us that we are redeemed from all iniquity, that Christ might purify unto himself a peculiar people, zealous of good works. (Titus 2:14.) Moreover, since the priests were now appointed, from whose lips the doctrine of the law was to be sought, they here come forward in God’s own name, and engage the people to respond to His generous calls upon them; and not only this, but also to obey His ministers. | 10. Audias ergo vocem Dei tui, et facias praecepta ejus, et statuta ejus quae ego praecipio tibi hodie. |
<052616>Deuteronomy 26:16-19
16. This day the Lord thy God hath commanded thee to do these statutes and judgments: thou shalt therefore keep and do them with all thine heart, and with all thy soul. | 16. Hodie Jehova Deus tuus praecepit tibi ut facias statuta haec et judicia: custodias ergo et facias ea toto corde tuo, et tota anima tua. |
17. Thou hast avouched the Lord this day to be thy God, and to walk in his ways, and to keep his statutes, and his commandments, and his judgments, and to hearken unto his voice: | 17. Jehovam exaltasti hodie, quod, tibi sit in Deum, et ambules in viis ejus, et custodias statuta ejus, et paecepta ejus, et judicia ejus: et obedias voci ejus. |
18. And the Lord hath avouched thee this day to be his peculiar people, as he hath promised thee, and that thou shouldest keep all his commandments; | 18. Jehova quoque exaltavit to hodie quod sis ei in populum peculiarem, quemadmodum loquutus est tibi, et quod custodias onmia praecepta eius. |
19. And to make thee high above all nations which he hath made, in praise, and in name, and in honor; and that thou mayest be an holy people unto the Lord thy God, as he hath spoken. | 19. Et panat to superiorem omnibus gentibus quas fecit, ad laudem, et nomen, et gloriam: et ut sis populus sanctus Jehovae Deo tuo, quemadmodum dixit. |
Deuteronomy 26:16 This day the Lord thy God. He again reminds them that God is the author of the Law, in order that His majesty should the more impress them; and not only so, but that, since the Law was specially delivered to them, its observation was the more enjoined upon them. Hence he exhorts them earnestly to apply their hearts to those things which God had enjoined them to keep, because men grow careless in their duties, unless they are often stirred up. For, undoubtedly, God indirectly rebukes the people’s indifference, by so often calling them to obedience. By the words “with all thy soul” is meant serious apprehension, and carefulness, as well as sincerity, free from all disguise and deceit. For nothing is more displeasing to God than hypocrisy, because He seeth the heart. If any object that it was vain to demand of them what no mortal can perform, viz., to keep the Law with all their heart, I reply, that all the heart is opposed to a double or divided heart, and is equivalent to entire, or altogether without deceit, although (as we shall hereafter see) it is not absurd to propose to believers an object, at which they are to aim, although they may not attain to it as long as the weakness of the flesh hinders them.
Deuteronomy 26:17 Thou hast avouched the Lord 6 He shews them from the consequence that nothing can be better or more desirable for them than to embrace God’s Law; for nothing can be more honorable to ourselves than to give to God His due honor, and to exalt His glory to its due preeminence. Moses declares that, if the Israelites submit themselves to the Law, this will be, as it were, to place Him in His rightful dignity; and he promises that the fruit of it will return to them, for that God, on his part, will exalt them, so that they shall far excel all other nations; as it is said in Isaiah, (Isaiah 8:13, 14,) “Sanctify the Lord of hosts — and he shall be for a sanctuary.” For no otherwise does He desire to be glorified by us, than to make us in turn partakers of His glory; and thus Moses gently entices them to receive the Law, because their solid happiness consists in this pious duty, if they altogether devote themselves to obedience. But this excellency of the Church, although it shines forth in the world, is still hidden from the blind, and, since it is spiritual, only obtains its praise before God and the angels.
DEUTERONOMY 6
20. And when thy son asketh thee in time to come, saying, What mean the testimonies, and the statutes, and the judgments, which the Lord our God hath commanded you? | 20. Quum interrogaverit to filius tuus cras, dicendo, Quid sibi volunt testimonia et statuta et judicia, quae praecepit Jehova Deus noster vobis. |
21. Then thou shalt say unto thy son, We were Pharaoh’s bond-men in Egypt, and the Lord brought us out of Egypt with a mighty hand: | 21. Tune dices filio tuo, Servi fuimus Pharaonis in Aegypto, et eduxit nos Jehova ex Aegypto in manu forti. |
22. And the Lord shewed signs and wonders, great and sore, upon Egypt, upon Pharaoh, and upon all his household, before our eyes: | 22. Deditque Jehova signa et portenta magna et pessima in Aegypto in Pharaonem, et in totam domum ejus, in oculis nostris. |
23. And he brought us out from thence, that he might bring us in, to give us the land which he sware unto our fathers. | 23. Atque nos eduxit inde, ut introduceret nos, ac darer nobis terram de qua juravit patribus nostris. |
24. And the Lord commanded us to do all these statutes, to fear the Lord our God, for our good always, that he might preserve us alive, as it is at this day. | 24. Itaque praecepit Jehova ut faciamus omnia statuta ista, ut timeamus Jehovam Deum nostrum in bonum nostrum omnibus diebus, ut conservaret nos in vita, ut in hac die. |
25. And it shall be our righteousness, if we observe to do all these commandments before the Lord our God, as he hath commanded us. | 25. Et justitia erit nobis quum custodierimus ut faciamus omne praeceptum istud coram Jehova Deo nostro, quemadmodum praecepit nobis. |
Deuteronomy 6:20 And when thy son asketh thee. The sole point which Moses urges in these verses is, that the people should testify their gratitude by obeying the Law, and that the same religion, 7 which he commands the fathers to teach, should descend to their posterity. The sum is, that there was good reason why all the precepts of the Law should be observed, since by them it was that God desired His people, after their deliverance, to shew forth their sense of His loving-kindness. Again, therefore, in this passage, he commends the Law by reminding them of their redemption, that the people might more willingly and more earnestly reverence it; for its authority has stronger claims upon them, because it was not imposed before God had laid them under obligation to Himself; and it would have been too base and absurd in them to refuse God as their Lawgiver, when they knew that by Him they had been purchased to Himself. In the next place He reminds them that for the same object they had been constituted the heirs of the land of Canaan, that they should honor God as the author of this special favor; thus he concludes that they are bound by a two-fold tie, for God had devoted them to Himself not once only, but had confirmed His dominion over them by their continued possession of the land. But there is nothing inconsistent in his saying that the land was promised by oath to their fathers before the Law was given; for, although God bestowed this gift gratuitously, yet did He justly claim the testimony of their gratitude; just as now-a-days, although He invites us to the hope of an eternal inheritance of His own free bounty, yet the end of our calling is, that we on our part should celebrate His glory all our life long. When in verse 24 he uses the words “to fear the Lord our God,” he briefly defines the sum of the Law; for it would not suffice for us to perform whatever is there commanded, unless our obedience had reference to the fear and worship of God. Integrity and uprightness, indeed, give God delight; but none will say that men’s life is duly ordered, if, whilst they exercise equity one towards another, they defraud God of His right. But it is well known that legitimate honor and worship are comprehended under the name of fear. Just afterwards, he commends the Law on account of its profitableness; for God provided for their own good, in delivering to them the rule of a just and pious life. In these words he intimates that they would be doubly ungrateful if they rejected what God meant for their own advantage. For this expression, “for our good,” is equivalent to saying that God not only had respect and care for His own rights in enacting the Law, but at the same time regarded what would be useful to them; and this he more clearly states in the next verse, where he says that “this shall be their righteousness if they observe” the Law; otherwise, that the rule of a righteous life, which would please God, was prescribed to them, than which nothing better could be desired. But it will be elsewhere shewn at greater length how the keeping of the Law is in itself righteousness, and yet that no man is justified by the Law; for, that the Law brings only wrath and condemnation, does not arise from any defect or faultiness in its doctrine, but must be imputed to our own guilt, as being far removed, nay, aliens from the righteousness 8 which it contains.
NUMBERS 15
<041537>Numbers 15:37-41
37. And the Lord spake unto Moses, saying, | 37. Dixit Jehova ad Mosen, dicendo: |
38. Speak unto the children of Israel, and bid them that they make them fringes in the borders of their garments, throughout their generations, and that they put upon the fringe of the borders a ribband of blue: | 38. Alloquere filios Israel, et dic eis ut faciant sibi fimbrias in angulis vestimentorum suorum, per generationes suas, et ponant in fimbria anguli filum hyacinthinum. |
39. And it shall be unto you for a fringe, that ye may look upon it, and remember all the commandments of the Lord, and do them; and that ye seek not after your own heart, and your own eyes, after which ye use to go a whoring: | 39. Et erit vobis instar fimbriarum, videbitisque eam, et recordabimini omnium praeceptorum Jehovae, ut faciatis ea: et non aspicietis post cor vestrum, et oculos vestros, post quos vos fornicamini. |
40. That ye may remember, and do all my commandments, and be holy unto your God. | 40. Ut recordemini, inquam, et faciatis omnia praecepta, et sitis sancti Deo vestro. |
41. I am the Lord your God, which brought you out of the land of Egypt, to be your God: I am the Lord your God. | 41. Ego Jehova Deus vester, qui eduxi vos e terra Aegypti, ut essem vobis in Deum: ego, inquam, Jehova Dens rester. |
13. And in all things that I have said unto you be circumspect: and make no mention of the name of other gods, neither let it be heard out of thy mouth. | 13. In omnibus quae praecepi vobis, cauti eritis. |
NUMBERS 15:38. Speak unto the children of Israel. A little farther on I will explain the object of this precept more fully: although it is plain from the next verse that God had no other object but to exercise the Jews in constant meditation upon the Law. For there was no religion contained in the fringes themselves, nor had that material texture any value in itself; but since men are lazy and forgetful in the cultivation of piety, God would by this aid make a provision for their infirmity. For when He says that they should “look upon it and remember,” He hints that they have need of these coarse rudiments, which may strike even their outward senses; and again, that, unless their memory was kept awake, nothing was more likely than that forgetfulness should steal upon them. But he presently adds, that God has no satisfaction in mere empty knowledge, but that He demands serious affections and practical performance. In the latter part of the verse he points out another requirement, viz., not only that their sluggishness should be stimulated, but also their wantonness restrained; for when he says “that ye seek not after your own heart,” he intimates that, unless God should restrain their wandering senses, they would be too much inclined to all kinds of superstitions and errors. And, first of all, by contrasting “the hearts and eyes” of men with His Law, he shews that He would have His people contented with that one rule which He prescribes, without the admixture of any of their own imaginations; and again, He denounces the vanity of whatever men invent for themselves, and however pleasing any human scheme may appear to them, He still repudiates and condemns it. And this is still more clearly expressed in the last word, when he says that men “go a whoring” whenever they are governed by their own counsels. This declaration is deserving of our especial observation, for whilst they have much self-satisfaction who worship God according to their own will, and whilst they account their zeal to be very good and very right, they do nothing else but pollute themselves by spiritual adultery. For what by the world is considered to be the holiest devotion, God with his own mouth pronounces to be fornication. By the word “eyes” he unquestionably means man’s power of discernment. NUMBERS 15:41. I am the Lord your God. Having at the end of the last verse commanded them to be holy unto their God, he now confirms this command by a reason, viz., that it was for this end that God redeemed them, that he might be their God, i.e., that He might be solemnly honored. He asserts God’s right, then, as founded upon the blessing of their deliverance, which would have been misplaced unless they devoted themselves to His service. The repetition at the conclusion is intended for confirmation.
DEUTERONOMY 6
REPETITION OF THE SAME COMMAND
Deuteronomy 6:6-9
6. And these words, which I command thee this day, shall be in thine heart; | 6. Erunt verba haec quae ego praecipio tibi hodie, in corde tuo. |
7. And thou shalt teach them diligently unto thy children, and shalt talk of them when thou sittest in thine house, and when thou walkest by the way, and when thou liest down, and when thou risest up. | 7. Et iterabis (vel, acues) ea filiis tuis, et disseres de ipsis sedens domi tuae, iter faciens, jacens in lecto, et surgens. |
8. And thou shalt bind them for a sign upon thine hand, and they shall be as frontlets between thine eyes. | 8. Et ligabis ea in signum in manu tua: et erunt in frontalia inter oculos tuos. |
9. And thou shalt write them upon the posts of thy house, and on thy gates | 9. Scribes quoque ea in postibus domus tuae, et in portis tuis. |
Deuteronomy 6:6 And these words. In these four next verses God again commands (as before) the study of His Law. And first, indeed, He would have it implanted in their hearts, lest forgetfulness of it should ever steal over them; and by the word “heart” He designates the memory and other faculties of the mind; as though He had said that this was so great a treasure, that there was good cause why they should hide it in their hearts, or so fix this doctrine deeply in their minds that it should never escape. Afterwards He enjoins that constant conversation should be held about it with their children, in order that fathers should diligently attend and apply themselves to the duty of instruction. The word ˆnç 9 shanan, which Moses uses, means properly “to whet.” Commentators think that it is employed metaphorically for “to reiterate,” or “to repeat constantly,” because, when the heavenly doctrine is inculcated, it will scarcely even thus be duly impressed on their hearts; but, since it is here used in the conjugation Piel, its signification may be transitive, viz., that they should cause it to penetrate their minds, as if they should prick them with the point of a sword; for the other translation does not seem consistent. But it is sufficient for me to state my opinion, lest any should be offended by its novelty. Lastly, he exhorts them to exercise themselves in its meditation both publicly and privately, in order to stimulate their want of energy. But, although he may seem to speak hyperbolically, yet if any one will carefully consider how slow and careless men are in learning, and how forgetful they are when they seem to have made some progress, he will readily acknowledge that Moses does not urge them so strongly on insufficient grounds, but that it was highly necessary for him to be thus rigid in exacting their attention. For this reason the Prophet in Psalm 1:2, pronounces them to be blessed who meditate in God’s law “day and night.” He leaves, then, no portion of time unoccupied with meditation on the Law; whether they are at home, or abroad, or when they retire to rest, or when they rise in the morning. To this precept David appears to allude in <19B962>Psalm 119:62, where he says, “At midnight I will rise to give thanks unto thee because of thy righteous judgments;” and again, <19B9148>Psalm 119:148, “Mine eyes prevent the night-watches, that I might meditate in thy word.” But still, by the expression “talk of them,” Moses does not urge the people to empty talkativeness, to which many are too much inclined, but he would have them severally thus establish themselves and be teachers of each other. He enumerates these various engagements, lest that change of occupation by which the mind is wont to be distracted should withdraw the godly from the right path, as though he commanded them to make this their chief aim in whatever business they might be engaged. For the same reason he desires bracelets and frontlets to be made of the precepts of the Law, contrasting doubtless this spiritual ornament with chains 10 of gold, as much as to say that they would more properly take delight in the pious recollection of the Law, than in those trifling ornaments which attract men’s senses. The Jews understanding this literally, accounted this external ostentation a mark of holiness, so as to think that they had almost done all they needed, when they wore the Law on their arms and foreheads. Thence their mistaken zeal proceeded still further, so that, as each desired to be thought better than others, they widened their phylacteries in proportion, for so they denominated the borders of their garments, on which were written certain sentences of the Law, as safeguards. This error our Lord severely reproves in the Scribes and Pharisees, (Matthew 23:5,) because it was a mere mockery of this admonition, and a profanation of its doctrine. The intention of God sufficiently appears in the passage from Exodus, which I have subjoined, and in which they are simply commanded to be diligent in keeping the Law. But there is good reason why diligence should be required, not only on account of the matter being highly important, but because, through our vanity, we are apt to relax our exertions, unless our slowness of heart is stimulated.
DEUTERONOMY 11
ANOTHER REPETITION
Deuteronomy 11:18-20
18. Therefore shall ye lay up these my words in your heart, and in your soul, and bind them for a sign upon your hand, that they may be as frontlets between your eyes. | 18. Ponite verba haec in corde vestro, et animo vestro, atque ea ligate in signum in manu vestra, sintque in frontalia inter oculos vestros. |
19. And ye shall teach them your children, speaking of them when thou sittest in thine house, and when thou walkest by the way, when thou liest down, and when thou risest up. | 19. Et docete ea filios vestros, et loquamini de eis quum sedebis domi tuae, et quum ambulabis per viam: quumque jacebis in lecto, et quum surges. |
20. And thou shalt write them upon the door-posts of thine house, and upon thy gates. | 20. Scribes quoque ea in postibus domus tuae, et in portis tuis. |
1. And Moses, with the elders of Israel, commanded the people, saying, Keep all the commandments which I command you this day. | 1. Et praecepit Moses et seniores Israelis populo, dicendo, Custodi omnia praecepta quae ego praecipio vobis hodie. |
2. And it shall be, on the day when ye shall pass over Jordan unto the land which the Lord thy God giveth thee, that thou shalt set thee up great stones, and plaster them with plaster. | 2. Erit, quo die transieritis Jordanem ad terram quam Jehova Deus tuus dat tibi, statues tibi lapides magnos, et lines calce. |
3. And thou shalt write upon them all the words of this law, when thou art passed over; that thou mayest go in unto the land which the Lord thy God giveth thee, a land that floweth with milk and honey; as the Lord God of thy fathers hath promised thee. | 3. Et scribes in illis omnia verba Legis hujus, quum transieris ut venias in terram quam Jehova Deus tuus dat tibi, terram fluentem lacte et melle: sicut loquutus est Jehova Deus patrum tuorum tibi. |
4. Therefore it shall be, when ye be gone over Jordan, that ye shall set up these stones, which I command you this day, in mount Ebal, and thou shalt plaster them with plaster. | 4. Erit ergo quum transieritis Jordanem, statuetis lapides istos de quibus ego praecipio vobis hodie, et lines eos calce. |
8. And thou shalt write upon the stones all the words of this law very plainly. | 8. Et scribes in lapidibus omnia verba Legis hujus (ad verbum, bene) distincte explicando. |
Deuteronomy 11:18 Therefore shall ye lay up these my words. He again demands their serious attention, lest if the doctrine he propounds should be only lightly and carelessly received, it should speedily be let slip; for to lay up in, or on, the heart, is the same as to hide deeply in it; although, where the word “soul” is added, the “heart” refers to the mind, or the intellectual faculties. In fine, he commands them to have the Law not only impressed on the mind, but embraced with sincere affection. In the next place, he commands that aid to the memory which we have just considered, viz., that they should wear the precepts on the arms and foreheads; as if God should constantly meet them, to arouse their senses. For (as has been said) God had no regard to the bands themselves, but would have them seen on their arms and foreheads for another object, viz., 11 to suggest and renew their care for religion. Again, He appointed them to occupy the place of ornaments, in order to accustom the people to take their chief delight in meditating on the Law. Thus that foolish ambition is sufficiently refuted, when hypocrites sought after a reputation for holiness by their fringes and other fopperies, as well as that gross error of the whole people, in thinking that they discharged their duty to God by their outward dress. What follows afterwards, that the precepts should be written on the gates of their cities, and on their private houses, tends to the same thing; for we have said, that since men’s minds are prone to vanity, and are easily distracted by innumerable allurements, they have need of such stays to hold them back. And this object is plainly expressed, when He commands them severally to speak of the precepts of the Law, whether they are sitting at home, or going abroad, or lying down, or rising up; because without diligent exercise, it usually happens that whatever men have once learnt is soon lost. He adds, also, another effect of this diligence, viz., that not only should each of them consult their own individual advantage, but also teach their children, whereby God’s Law would ever be maintained in rigor by perpetual succession.
DEUTERONOMY 27
Deuteronomy 27:1 And Moses, with the elders. This precept is of the same character as those that have preceded it; for, as God would have His precepts written on the door-posts, and on the borders of their garments, so that they might constantly meet their eyes, so also would He have a monument existing at the very entrance of their land, from which the people might learn that they dwelt in it, in order that they might worship God purely. Wherefore, lest by the people’s carelessness the knowledge of the Law should be obscured, or in any way obliterated, God would have its sum inscribed in a conspicuous place. Hence may be gathered the similarity I have adverted to between the private houses of individuals and the whole land. When the precepts were written on the doors, every one was admonished that his house was sacred to God, and the same was the case with the whole land, so that whosoever entered it might know that it was, as it were, the sanctuary of heavenly doctrine, and thus their zeal might be stirred up to the pure worship of God. The object of the plain and distinct writing of the Scripture, referred to in verse 8, was to take away (the excuse of 12 ) ignorance.
DEUTERONOMY 31
Deuteronomy 31:10-13
10. And Moses commanded them, saying, At the end of *every* seven years, in the solemnity of the year of release, in the feast of tabernacles, | 10. Et praecepit Levitis Moses, dicendo, Septimo quoque anno, tempore anni remissionis, in solennitate tabernaculorum, |
11. When all Israel is come to appear before the Lord thy God in the place which he shall choose, thou shalt read this law before all Israel in their hearing. | 11. Quum venerit universus Israel ut appareat coram Jehova Deo, in loco quem elegerit, leges Legem istam coram universo Israele in auribus eorum. |
12. Gather the people together, men, and women, and children, and thy stranger that is within thy gates, that they may hear, and that they may learn, and fear the Lord your God, and observe to do all the words of this law; | 12. Congregando populum, viros, et mulieres, parvulos et peregrinos qui sunt intra portas tuas, ut audiant, et discant, timeantque Jehovam Deum vestrum, et custodiant faciendo omnia verba legis hujus. |
13. And that their children, which have not known any thing, may hear, and learn to fear the Lord your God, as long as ye live in the land whither ye go over Jordan to possess it. | 13. Et filii eorum qui non noverunt audiant, et discant timere Jehovam Deum vestrum, omnibus diebus quibus victuri estis super terram, ad quam transmisso Jordane pergitis ut possideatis. |
Deuteronomy 31:10 And Moses commanded them. The object of this precept is the same as that of the foregoing. He would have (the Law 12 ) represented, and constantly kept before their eyes; now He commands that it should also be recited every seventh year, lest the knowledge of it should ever depart. But let us follow the order of the words. First of all, Moses says that “he wrote” the Law. Before this, the doctrines of religion had only been expressed by word of mouth, for their fathers had handed down traditionally to their children whatever had been declared to them from heaven. Thus the religion and faith of the people in Egypt was only founded on ancient revelations (oraculis) and the traditions of their fathers. But, forasmuch as nothing is more easy than for men’s minds, in their vanity, speedily to forget true doctrine, and to involve themselves in manifold errors, God, willing to provide against this evil, consigned the rule of piety to public records, 13 so that there might be no pretense of ignorance if their posterity should decline from it. Behold, then, the reason why the Law was written down, that God’s truth might be witnessed in the continued lapse of ages. He does not mean that the Law was so “delivered” to the Levites, that they should suppress it, or should be its only keepers; but if he had exhorted them all indifferently to read it, scarcely any would have applied themselves to its study; for so it is wont to happen, that individuals neglect what is enjoined generally upon all. Wherefore the Levites are appointed to be the guardians of the Law (nomophylaces), to watch diligently, amidst the neglect and contempt of others, lest the knowledge of God should fail. Nor is there any question that the Law was therefore entrusted to their hands, that they might be its interpreters. And to this that passage of Malachi refers, (Malachi 2:7,) “For the priest’s lips should keep knowledge, and they should seek the Law at his mouth; for he is the messenger of the Lord of hosts.” For what is added immediately afterwards, that they should read over the Law every seventh year, cannot properly be taken, as if, during the rest of the time, it should remain hidden among themselves; for God would have them to teach daily, and constantly to remind the people of their duty. But lest this practice should become obsolete, either by the aversion of the people or the laziness of the priests, this solemn rite was added, that every seventh year when the most numerous assembly of the people took place, the promulgation of the Law should be renewed. Whence it appears that nothing is too sacred nor too abundantly fortified by precautions to escape violation and infraction from man’s wickedness; for when the recitation of the Law was thus precisely enjoined upon the Levites, it was surely astonishing and detestable that it should be, as it were, discovered in the time of Josiah, and that all were aroused by its novelty, as if they had never heard of it before. (2 Kings 22:3, etc.) Exactly the same thing did not occur under the Papacy; but when its scarecrow 14 bishops desired to domineer and tyrannize, they used the artifice of declaring it unlawful to inquire into the mysteries of Scripture. Hence it was brought about that they might securely addict themselves to their ridiculous follies, and that the monks, their emissaries, might vent with impunity whatever fables came into their heads. But, in fine, the intention of God was that every seventh year the people should be reminded to meditate diligently on the law.
Deuteronomy 31:12 Gather the people together. 15 Literally, “to gather,” 16 etc., in the infinitive mood; and although this is sometimes taken for the imperative, yet, in this passage some improperly translate it “Gather,” etc., as if Moses commanded them to give these injunctions once only to the people of their own generation, whereas he is rather continuing with the foregoing sentence. This verse, then, is connected with what went before, viz., that the Law should be promulgated anew, in the years in which they were to hold their greatest assembly; because the people was then called to the Jubilee by the sound of the trumpet. The word “gather,” therefore, extends to all these septennial assemblies, of which mention will be elsewhere made. Nor certainly would what he says of the people that are “within their gates,” accord with the times of Moses, since in those days there were none. Consequently he more fully explains why he pointed out the seventh year, viz., because the whole people then came “to appear before God.” He specially mentions the “women and children,” lest their age or sex might be an excuse; and this heightens the villany and dishonesty of those 17 who would debar not children only, but women also, from religious learning; since God invites all from the least to the greatest to His school, and would have them to be His disciples. With respect to “the strangers,” we must understand not those who had come into the land of Canaan on business, and were soon to return home, but those who had chosen to take up their abode there, and from their long residence had coalesced into the same body with the Israelites. The fruit and utility (of this recitation 18 ) is added, that by hearing they might learn to fear God. Whence we infer, that true religion has its origin in knowledge, and that whatever piety men not instructed by God’s word may appear to have, is mere pretense. “To observe to do,” is equivalent to applying themselves diligently and zealously to obey the precepts of the Law.
Deuteronomy 31:13 And that their children, which have not known anything. Again, we see that their present assembly is not referred to, but that which was to be repeated every seven years, in order that their posterity might be retained in the path of duty. Another use, then, of this recitation is adduced; that many who, from their age, could not be witnesses of the first promulgation, might thence learn how God was to be served. The possession of the land is again set before them, that God’s bounty may attract them to obedience.
DEUTERONOMY 6
Deuteronomy 6:10-12
10. And it shall be, when the Lord thy God shall have brought thee into the land which he sware unto thy fathers, to Abraham, to Isaac, and to Jacob, to give thee great and goodly cities, which thou buildedst not; | 10. Erit autem quum introduxerit to Jehova Deus tuus in terram de qua juravit patribus tuis, Abraham, Isaac et Jacob, se daturum tibi eam, et urbes magnas et pulchras quasnon aedificasti: |
11. And houses full of all good things, which thou filledst not; and wells digged, which thou diggedst not; vineyards and olive-trees, which thou plantedst not; when thou shalt have eaten, and be full; | 11. Et domus plenas omni bono, quas non replesti, et cisternas effossas, quas non effodisti: vineas et oliveta, quae non plantasti: et comederis, et saturatus fueris: |
12. Then beware lest thou forget the Lord, which brought thee forth out of the land of Egypt, from the house of bondage. | 12. Cave tibi ne obliviscaris Jehovae, qui eduxit te e terra Aegyptie domo servorum. |
Deuteronomy 6:10 And it shall be, when the Lord thy God. Since wealth and prosperity for the most part blind men’s minds, so that they do not sufficiently attend to modesty and moderation, but rather grow wanton in their lusts, and intoxicate themselves with pleasures, God prescribes against this error by anticipation. For not without cause does he admonish them to beware lest they forget God, when they shall have been liberally and luxuriously treated by Him, but because he knew this to be a common vice, for abundance to beget arrogance; as afterwards he will say in his song,
“Jeshurun waxed fat and kicked: thou art waxen fat, etc., then he forsook God which made him, and lightly esteemed the Rock of his salvation.” (Deuteronomy 32:15.)
First of all, he shews how base and unworthy would be their ingratitude, if, when loaded with so many excellent benefits by God, they should cast away the recollection of Him; for, as His goodness was inestimable, in giving them cities built by the hands of others, and in transferring to them whatever others had prepared by their great labor and industry, so would their impiety be the more detestable in neglecting Him, when He daily set Himself before them in this abundant store of blessing. Let us learn, therefore, from this passage, that we are invited by God’s liberality to honor Him, and that whenever He deals kindly by us, He places His glory before our eyes; but, on the other hand, we should remember, that what ought to be as it were vehicles, to lift up our minds on high, are, by our own fault, converted into obstacles and clogs, and that therefore we ought to be the more upon our guard. At the end of verse 12, he reproves their folly by another argument, if being thus suddenly enriched, they should give way to intemperance; as if he had said, that their absurdity would be insupportable, if, when uplifted by God’s bounty, they should not remember their origin; for nothing should have served more to incline them to humility than that wretched state of servitude from whence they had been rescued. Therefore he contrasts with that ample dominion to which God had exalted them, the house of bondmen,” 19 in order that the recollection of their former lot may restrain all frowardness.
DEUTERONOMY 9
1. Hear, O Israel: Thou art to pass over Jordan this day, to go in to possess nations greater and mightier than thyself, cities great, and fenced up to heaven; | 1. Audi Israel, Tu transis bodie Jordanem, ut ingrediaris ad possidendum gentes magnas et robustas praeter to, urbes magnas et munitas usque ad coelum; |
2. A people great and tall, the children of the Anakims, whom thou knowest, and of whom thou hast heard say, Who can stand before the children of Anak? | 2. Populum magnum et procerum, filios Enacim quos tu nosti, et de quibus tu audisti, Quis consister coram filiis Enac? |
3. Understand therefore this day, that the Lord thy God is he which goeth over before thee; as a consuming fire he shall destroy them, and he shall bring them down before thy face: so shalt thou drive them out, and destroy them quickly, as the Lord hath said unto thee. | 3. Scito itaque hodie quod Jehova Deus tuus ipse est qui transit ante to, ignis consumens: ipse delebit eos ac humiliabit eos coram re, ut expellas eos perdasque eos cito, quemadmodum dixit Jehova tibi. |
4. Speak not thou in thine heart, after that the Lord thy God hath cast them out from before thee, saying, For my righteousness the Lord hath brought me in to possess this land; but for the wickedness of these nations the Lord doth drive them out from before thee. | 4. Ne dicas in corde tuo, quum expulerit Jehova Deus tuus illos a facie tua, dicendo, Propter justitiam meam introduxit me Jehova ut possideam terram hanc: quum propter iniquitatem gentium istarum Jehova expellat eas a facie tua. |
5. Not for thy righteousness, or for the uprightness of thine heart, dost thou go to possess their land; but for the wickedness of these nations the Lord thy God doth drive them out from before thee, and that he may perform the word which the Lord sware unto thy fathers, Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. | 5. Non propter justitiam tuam et rectitudinem cordis tui tu ingredieris ad possidendam terram eorum, sed propter impietatem gentium istarum Jehova Deus tuus expellit eas a facie tua, ut confirmet verbum quod juravit ipse Jehova patribus tuis, Abrahae, Isaac, et Jacob. |
6. Understand therefore, that the Lord thy God giveth thee not this good land to possess it for thy righteousness; for thou art a stiffnecked people. | 6. Scito itaque quod non propter justitiam tuam Jehova Deus tuus dat tibi terram istam optimam, ut possideas eam: siquidem populus durae cervicis es. |
Deuteronomy 9:1 Thou art to pass over Jordan this day. The whole of this passage contains an eulogy on the gratuitous liberality of God, whereby He had bound the people to Himself unto the obedience of the Law. But this (as we have already seen) ought to have been a most pressing stimulus to incite the people, and altogether to ravish them to the worship and love of God, to whom they were under so great obligation. The design of Moses, then, was to shew that the Israelites, for no merit of their own, but by the signal bounty of God, would be heirs of the land of Canaan; and that this entirely flowed from the covenant and their gratuitous adoption; in order that, on their part, they should persevere in the faithful observation of the covenant, and so should be the more disposed to honor Him. For it would be too disgraceful that they, whom God had prevented by His grace, should not meet Him, as it were, by voluntarily submitting to His dominion. Moreover, lest they should arrogate anything to themselves, he commends the greatness of God’s power, in that they could not be victorious over so many nations, unless by the miraculous aid of heaven. With this view, he states that these nations excelled not only in greatness and multitude, but also in military valor. He adds that their cities were great and impregnable; and, finally, that in them were the children of the giants, formidable from their enormous stature. For Anak (as is related in Joshua 15. 20 ) was a celebrated giant, whose descendants were called Anakim. And, to take away all doubt about this, he cites themselves as witnesses, that they were so terrified by their appearance as to wish to turn back again. We now understand the object of all these details, viz., that God’s glory may shine forth in the victories and success of the people. The words “whom thou knowest, and of whom thou hast heard,” have reference to the spies; 21 for these giants had not yet become openly known to the people; but he transfers the case of a few to them all, because, by the account the spies had given, terror had invaded the whole camp, as though they had actually come into conflict with them. Since, then, they had been persuaded of their inferiority to their enemies, and utterly disheartened by the report they received, Moses convicts them on their own evidence, lest, perchance, they might hereafter assume to themselves the praise which was due to God alone. But we are taught in these words, that such is the ingratitude of mankind, that they obscure, as much as they can, God’s bounties, and never yield, except when driven to conviction.
Deuteronomy 9:3 Understand therefore this day. He concludes from what has preceded that the Israelites would be too perverse, unless they acknowledge that their enemies were overcome by the hand of God; and, still more to heighten the miracle, he uses a similitude, comparing God to a fire, which consumes so many nations in an unwonted and incredible manner. It is as if he had said, that it could not be effected by human or ordinary means that so many and such warlike peoples could thus quickly perish. Elsewhere God is called “a consuming fire” in a different sense, that we may fear his wrath and power; but here Moses only means that the destruction of the Canaanitish nations was His wonderful work.
Deuteronomy 9:4 Speak not thou in thine heart. He now more plainly warns the people not to exalt themselves in proud and foolish boasting. If they had not been naturally so depraved and malignant, it would have been sufficient to point out God’s grace in a single word; but he could not induce them to gratitude except by correcting and destroying their pride. He therefore takes away this stumblingblock, in order that God’s generosity might be conspicuous among them. “To speak in the heart” is equivalent to reflecting or conceiving an opinion. Wherefore Moses not only reproves the boasting of the lips, but that hidden arrogance, wherewith men are puffed up, when they take to themselves the praise which is due to God. Moreover, he not only prohibits them from ascribing it to their own valor, that they had routed their enemies, and gained possession of the land, but also from imagining that this was the just recompense of their merits. For God is not less defrauded of His glory when men oppose their righteousness to His liberality, than when they boast that whatever blessings they have are obtained by their own industry. To make this more ‘clear, I will repeat it. Moses does not forbid the people from thinking that they had themselves acquired the land without God’s aid; nay, he takes it for granted that they themselves will acknowledge that it was by God’s help that they were victorious; but he is not contented with this limited gratitude unless they at the same time acknowledge that they had deserved nothing of the kind, and therefore that it was a mere and gratuitous act of His bounty. The reason given in the second clause does not appear sufficiently 22 conclusive, viz., that the nations were driven out on account of their own wickedness; for it might have been that what God took away from these wicked reprobates He transferred to those who were more worthy; but. it appears to be an indirect admonition, that the Israelites should compare themselves with these nations; because it was evidently to be gathered by them from thence, 23 that they had not acquired this foreign land, from which the former inhabitants had been ejected, by their own righteousness. And this is still more clearly expressed in the two next verses.
Deuteronomy 9:5 Not for thy righteousness. First of all, he would have the punishment inflicted upon these nations awaken the Israelites to fear, and thus that they should attribute nothing to themselves; because it was God’s design not to reward their merits, but to shew the severity of His judgment. Secondly, he confirms this by two arguments; viz., because God thus had performed what He promised Abraham; (which promise, as has been already seen, was founded on mere grace;) and, again, because the people itself was naturally perverse and rebellious. Hence, it sufficiently appears that there was no room for merits, since by them God’s covenant would have been nullified, nor, if there were, could any such be found in so depraved and contumacious a nation. And besides, God had made His covenant with Abraham almost four centuries before they were born. Hence it follows that this benefit proceeded from some other source. But he still further represses their pride, by reproaching them with being “stiff-necked;” for it would have been too absurd to imagine that God, whom they had not ceased to provoke with their sins, was under obligation to them, as if they had duly discharged their duty. This metaphor is taken from oxen, which are useless until they are accustomed to bend their necks; it is then the same as saying that they were not only unsubmissive, but that in their obstinacy they shook off the yoke. By his impressing on them, for the third time, that the Israelites had not deserved the land by their righteousness, we learn that nothing is more difficult than for men to strip themselves of their blind arrogance, whereby they detract some portion of the praise from God’s mercies. Now, if in regard to an earthly inheritance God so greatly exalts His mercy, what must we think of the heavenly inheritance? 24 He would have it attributed to Himself alone, that the children of Israel possess the land of Canaan; how much less, then, will He tolerate the obtrusion of men’s merits in order to the acquisition of heaven? Nor is there anything in the pretense of the Papists that they attribute the first place to God’s bounty; because He claims altogether for Himself what they would share with Him. But if any object that this was only said to His ancient people, I reply, that we are no better than they. Let each retire into himself, 25 and he will not excuse the hardness of his neck. But they who are regenerated by God’s Spirit, know that they are not naturally formed unto obedience; and thus that it is only mercy which makes them to differ from the worst of men.
DEUTERONOMY 10
21. He is thy praise, and he is thy God, that hath done for thee these great and terrible things which thine eyes have seen. | 21. Jehova est laus tua, et ipse est Dens qui fecit tecum magna et terribilia ista quae viderunt oculi tui. |
22. Thy fathers went down into Egypt with threescore and ten persons; and now the Lord thy God hath made thee as the stars of heaven for multitude. | 22. Cum septuaginta animabus descenderunt patres tui in Aegyptum: nunc autem posuit to Jehova Deus tuus sicut stellas coeli in multitudinem. |
Deuteronomy 10:21 He is thy praise. That he may the more easily persuade his countrymen that nothing is better, or more desirable for them than to devote themselves to God’s service, Moses reminds them that they have nothing to boast of out of Him; as if he had said, that they were happy in this one respect, that God had taken them under His charge; but that if this glory were to be taken away, they would be miserable and ruined. For God is called “the praise” of His people, as being their honor and their ornament. Consequently, if they desire to enjoy true and solid blessedness, they must take care to keep themselves under His guardianship; for, if they should be deprived of this, nothing would remain to them but ignominy and shame. To the same effect, he adds, that He is their God; because nothing can be more perverse and absurd than not to receive the Creator of the world Himself, when He freely offers Himself as our God. In proof of this, he subjoins, that He has exerted His power in many miracles for His people’s safety; and, in order that they might be rendered the more inexcusable, he cites their own eyes as witnesses of so many mighty acts which had been wrought in their favor. Thence he goes a step higher, (reminding them, 26) that their race had been wondrously increased in a short time; whence it was plain, that they had been thus incredibly multiplied by preternatural and divine influence. For assuredly the signal blessing of God was clearly manifested, in the procreation of seven hundred thousand men in less than two hundred and fifty years. 27
Those who then lived had not seen them with their own eyes; but Moses retraces God’s grace to the fountainhead, that they may more fully acknowledge, that whatever good they had experienced depended on that adoption, which had made them God’s people.
DEUTERONOMY 11
<051101>Deuteronomy 11:1-7
1. Therefore thou shalt love the Lord thy God— and keep his charge— and his statutes— and his judgments— and his commandments— alway. | 1. Dilige igitur Jehovam Deum tuum— et custodi custodiam ejus— et statuta ejus— et judicia ejus— et praecepta ejus omnibus diebus. |
2. And know ye this day: for I speak not with your children which have not known— and which have not seen the chastisement of the Lord your God— his greatness— his mighty hand— and his stretched-out arm— | 2. Et scitote hodie— non enim cure filiis vestris loquor— qui non noverunt— neque viderunt eruditionem Jehovae Dei vestri— magnitudinem ejus— manum ejus validam— et brachium ejus extentum— |
3. And his miracles— and his acts— which he did in the midst of Egypt unto Pharaoh the king of Egypt— and unto all his land; | 3. Et signa ejus— et opera ejus quae fecit in medio Aegypti— ipsi Pharaoni regi Aegypti— et universae terrae ejus. |
4. And what he did unto the army of Egypt— unto their horses— and to their chariots: how he made the water of the Red sea to overflow them— as they pursued after you— and how the Lord hath destroyed them unto this day; | 4. Aegyptiorum— equis ejus et curribus ejus: qui inundare fecit aquas maris rubri super fades eorum— dum vos persequerentur: et perdidit eos Jehova usque in hanc diem. |
5. And what he did unto you in the wilderness— until ye came into this place; | 5. Quae praeterea fecit vobis in deserto donec veniretis usque ad locum istum. |
6. And what he did unto Dathan and Abiram— the sons of Eliab— the son of Reuben: how the earth opened her mouth— and swallowed them up— and their households— and their tents— and all the substance that was in their possession— in the midst of all Israel. | 6. Et quae fecit Datham et Abiram filiis Eliab filii Ruben— quando aperuit terra os suum— deglutivit eos— domosque eorum ac tabernacula eorum— atque universam substantiam quae erat in pedibus eorum— in medio totius Israelis. |
7. But your eyes have seen all the great acts of the Lord which he did. | 7. Quandoquidem oculi vestri viderunt omnia opera Jehovae magna quae fecit. |
Deuteronomy 11:1 Therefore thou shalt love the Lord thy God. The whole address has this scope, that the people should testify their gratitude by their obedience, and thus being allured by God’s bounties, should reverently embrace His Law. On this account also, he requires them to love God, before he exhorts them to obey the Law itself. For, although he might have imperiously and menacingly commanded them, he preferred to lead them gently to obedience, by setting before them the sweetness of His grace. In sum, he exhorts them that, being invited by God’s love, they should love him in return. Meanwhile, it is well to observe that free affection is the foundation and beginning of duly obeying the Law, for what is drawn forth by constraint, or servile fear, cannot please God. He designates the precepts of the Law by various names, in order that they may zealously and attentively apply themselves to listen to God, who has omitted nothing calculated to regulate their life; for, by this variety of words, he signifies that God had familiarly and perfectly taught whatever was required. As to the three latter words, “his statutes, and judgments, and commandments,” what I have observed in Genesis and in the Psalms may be referred to. The word twmçm, 28 meshamroth, or guards, (custodiae,) which here stands first, is spoken in commendation of the Law on this ground, that it fences in our life, as it were, with rails, lest it should be exposed to errors on the right hand and on the left,. At the end of the verse he exhorts them to perseverance, because it was not allowable for the recollection of their deliverance ever to cease.
Deuteronomy 11:2 And know ye this day. He again confirms the preceding sentence; because they had been more than sufficiently taught by the illustrious acts of God, how great was His power and how remarkable His mercy toward themselves. Two meanings may be given to the words; for some connect them thus, “Know ye this day the chastisement of the Lord,” and include in a parenthesis the clause, “for I speak not with your children, which have not known, and have not seen;” but others read the word of exhortation “know ye” separately, and 29 without any connection. The latter view pleases me best; although it little affects the substance of the matter which exposition we follow. For Moses admonishes them, that, if they only pay attention to the works of God, His glory, which may instruct them to fear Him, may be clearly beheld in them. In order, however, to urge them more vehemently, he adds, that he does not speak to posterity, to which the fame of these miracles would reach, but that he addresses eye-witnesses, who need no proof of them, having been assured of them by certain experience. He celebrates in many expressions of eulogy these miracles, whereby God had testified to them His power and goodness, lest they should lightly pass by what was worthy of their most earnest attention, and constant meditation. I forbear now to speak of other points, which I have elsewhere commented on. The word rswm 30 musar, which stands first, is general, and extends to all the specific terms that follow; some, therefore, improperly render it “chastisement.” Where it is said at the end of verse 4, that the Egyptians were “destroyed unto that day,” we must understand that the effects of the slaughter, wherewith God destroyed them, were felt as if still present.
Deuteronomy 11:5 And what he did unto you. These things will be spoken of in their proper place in the regular course of the history, from which my method of teaching has compelled me to wander a little. For Moses, to heighten the authority of the Law, sets before them compendiously the circumstances which had occurred in the desert, partly in order that God’s judgments might alarm them by their severity, and partly that His mercies might draw their minds towards Him by their graciousness. Finally, he concludes by saying that he does not speak of unknown things, but that he merely recalled to their recollection the works of God whereof they had been themselves spectators.
DEUTERONOMY 8
<050801>Deuteronomy 8:1-6
1. All the commandments which I command thee this day shall ye observe to do, that ye may live, and multiply, and go in and possess the land which the Lord sware unto your fathers. | 1. Omne praeceptum quod ego praecipio tibi hodie, custodietis ut faciatis, ut vivatis, et multiplicemini, et ingrediamini ut possideatis terram de qua juravit Jehova patribus vestris. |
2. And thou shalt remember all the way which the Lord thy God led thee these forty years in the wilderness, to humble thee, and to prove thee, to know what was in thine heart, whether thou wouldest keep his commandments, or no. deserto, ut affligeret to ac tentaret to, ut sciret quid haberes in corde tuo, utrum observaturus esses praecepta ejus, annon. | 2. Meminerisque totius vim per quam deduxit to Jehova Deus tuus jam quadraginta annis in deserto, ut affligeret to ac tentaret to, ut sciret quid haberes in corde tuo, utrum observaturus esses praecepta ejus, annon. |
3. And he humbled thee, and suffered thee to hunger, and fed thee with manna, which thou knewest not, neither did thy fathers know; that he might make thee know that man doth not live by bread only, but by every word that proceedeth out of the mouth of the Lord doth man live. | 3. Et afflixit te, ac esurire te fecit, postea pavit te Man, quod non noveras, neque noverant patres tui: ut scire faceret te quod non in pane solo vivet homo, sed omni eo quod egreditur ex ore Jehovae vivet homo. |
4. Thy raiment waxed not old upon thee, neither did thy foot swell, these forty years. | 4. Vestimentum tuum ne quaquam veteravit super re, neque pes tuus intumuit jam quadraginta annis. |
5. Thou shalt also consider in thine heart, that, as a man chasteneth his son, so the Lord thy God chasteneth thee. | 5. Sciasque in corde tuo quod quemadmodum erudit homo filium suum, sic Jehova Deus tuus erudit re. |
6. Therefore thou shalt keep the commandments of the Lord thy God, to walk in his ways, and to fear him. | 6. Et custodies praecepta Jehovae Dei tui, ut ambules per vias ejus, et timeas eum. |
8. Therefore shall ye keep all the commandments which I command you this day, that ye may be strong, and go in and possess the land whither ye go to possess it; | 8. Custodite ergo omne praeceptum quod ego praecipio vobis hodie, ut roboremini, et ingrediamini, possideatisque terram ad quam vos transitis ut possideatis cam. |
9. And that ye may prolong your days in the land which the Lord sware unto your fathers to give unto them, and to their seed, a land that floweth with milk and honey. | 9. Atque ut prolongetis dies super terram quam juravit Jehova patribus vestris se daturum illis et semini eorum, terram fluentem lacte et melle. |
Deuteronomy 8:1 All the commandments. Although the first verse might have been included among the promises, whereby, as we shall hereafter see, the Law was ratified by Moses, because he here exhorts and incites the Israelites to obedience by proposing to them the hope of reward; still it appeared to me that I might conveniently insert it here, since the design of Moses was simply this, to attract them by the sweetness of the promised inheritance to receive the doctrines of the Law. This sentence, then, may be justly counted among those whereby their minds were prepared to submit themselves to God with the gentleness and docility that became them; as though he had said, because the land of Canaan is now not far from you, its very nearness ought to encourage you to take upon you God’s yoke more cheerfully; for the same God, who this day declares to you His law, invites you to the enjoyment of that land, which He promised with an oath to your fathers. And certainly it is evident from this latter clause of the verse, that Moses did not simply promise them a reward if they should keep the law; but rather set before them the previous favor, wherewith God had gratuitously prevented them, in order that they might, on their part, shew themselves grateful for it Moses calls the commandments his, not (as we have already seen) because he had invented them himself, but because he faithfully handed them down from the dictation of God’s own mouth. And this we may also more fully gather from the following verse, wherein he recounts the mercies of the time past, and at the same time calls to their recollection by how many proofs God had instructed them, to form and accustom them to obedience. In the first place, he bids them remember generally the dealings of God, which they had seen for forty years, and then descends to particulars, viz., that God had proved them by afflictions, “to know what was in their heart;” for thus may the expressions be paraphrased, “to humble thee, and to prove thee, to know what was in thine heart;” in which words he admonishes them, that they were painfully tried by many troubles and difficulties not without very good reason, viz., because they had need of such trial. Yet, at the same time, he indirectly reproves their obstinacy, which was then detected; since otherwise, if all things had gone prosperously with them, it would have been easy for them to pretend great fear of God, though, as was actually discovered, it did not really exist.
Deuteronomy 8:3 And he humbled thee, and suffered thee to hunger. Inasmuch as they were sometimes made to suffer hunger in the wilderness, he proves the advantage of this discipline, because they thus learnt that the human race does not live by bread and wine alone, but by the secret power of God. For though all confess that it is through God’s goodness that the earth is fruitful, still their senses are so tied to the meat and drink, that they rise no higher, and do not acknowledge God as their Father and nourisher, but rather bind Him down to the outward means to which they are attached, as if His hand, of itself, and without instruments, could not effect or supply anything. Their perception, therefore, that the fruits of the earth are produced by God, is but a cold notion, which speedily vanishes, and does not cling to their memory. The power of God, as well as His goodness, is indeed abundantly manifested in the use of His creatures, which we naturally enjoy; but the depravity of the human mind causes that the testimonies of it act like a veil to obscure that bright light. Besides, the majority of mankind think of God as if banished afar off, and dwelling in inactivity as if He had resigned His office in heaven and earth; and hence it arises, that trusting in their present abundance, they implore not His favor, nay, that they pass it by as needless; and, when deprived of their accustomed supplies, they altogether despair, as if God’s hand alone were insufficient for their succor. Since, then, men do not sufficiently profit by the guidance and instruction of nature, but rather are blinded in their view of God’s works, it was desirable that in this miracle (of the manna) a standing and manifest proof should be given, that men do not only live upon God’s bounty, when they eat bread and drink wine, but even when all supplies fail them. Although there be some harshness in the words, yet the sense is clear, that men’s life consists not in their food, but that God’s inspiration suffices for their nourishment. And we must remember, that the eternal life of the soul is not here referred to, but that we are simply and solely taught that although bread and wine fail, our bodies may be sustained and invigorated by God’s will alone. Let it then be regarded as settled, that this is improperly, however acutely, referred to the spiritual life, and a relation imagined in its doctrine to faith; as if the grace, which is offered in the promises, and received by faith, gave life to our souls; since it is simply stated, that the animating principle (vigor), which is diffused by the spirit of God for sustenance, proceeds out of His mouth. In <19A430>Psalm 104:30, there is an exact repetition of what was before said here by Moses, “Thou sendest forth thy Spirit, they are created: and thou renewest the face of the earth.” The word translated “not only,” seems to have been expressly added, lest, if Moses had altogether excluded the bread which is destined for our food, he should not do justice to God. Thus, then, does he guard his words, as much as to say, that although bread sustains man’s life, still this support would be too weak, unless the hidden power of God occupied the first place; and that this intrinsic virtue, as it is called, which He of Himself inspires, would suffice, even although all other aids should fail. And this doctrine, first of all, arouses us to gratitude, referring to God Himself whatever by His creatures He supplies to us for the nourishment and preservation of our lives, whilst it teaches us that although all the instruments of this world should fail, still we may hope for life from Himself alone. There is no ordinary wisdom in recollecting both these points. Christ admirably applied this passage to its true and genuine practical use; for when the devil would persuade him to command the stones to be made bread for the satisfaction of His hunger, He answered, “Man shall not live by bread alone,” etc., (Matthew 4:4,) as if he had said, There is in God’s hands another remedy, for even although He supply not food, He is still able to keep men in life by His will alone. But I touch upon this the more briefly, because I have more fully treated it in my Commentaries on “the Harmony of the Gospels.” 31
With the same object he adds, that their raiment was not worn out in so long a time, and that their shoes remained whole; viz., that they might be fully convinced, that whatever concerns the preservation of human life and man’s daily wants is so entirely in God’s hands, that not only its enjoyment, but even its continuance and being, depend upon His blessing.
Deuteronomy 8:5 Thou shalt also consider in thine heart. He concludes that in the constant tenor of God’s acts, from the time the Israelites were brought out of Egypt, His paternal care for their instruction might be recognised. For the word rsy, 32 yasar, is taken by some in too restricted a sense for “to chastise,” whereas it comprehends the whole process of a proper education; as if he had said, that unless they were hereafter submissive, and disposed to be dutiful, they would be something more than intractable, since they had been duly taught and kept under the best discipline, and that God had omitted nothing which could be required from the father of a family. Hence it follows, that long ago, and by much instruction, they were accustomed to embrace the teaching of the Law, just as it becomes children to be obedient to their father’s voice. And this he explains more clearly in the next verse; again concluding, that therefore they were to observe the Law, and to walk in the commandments of God. Whereon also we may shortly observe, that the fear of God, as I have already stated elsewhere, is the foundation of due obedience to the Law. The passage which I have interwoven from Deuteronomy 11 may also be counted among the promises, for God allures in it His people to obedience by the hope of His blessing; and since the possession of the land, which was then in sight, is set before them, the words appeared to me to fit in not badly here; because God had no other intention in this eulogium of it, but to prepare the minds of the people for keeping the Law.
DEUTERONOMY 29
<052902>Deuteronomy 29:2-9
2. And Moses called unto all Israel, and said unto them, Ye have seen all that the Lord did before your eyes in the land of Egypt unto Pharaoh, and unto all his servants, and unto all his land; | 2. Vocavitque Moses universum Israelem, et dixit eis, Vos ipsi vidistis omnia quae fecit Jehova in oculis vestris in terra Aegypti Pharaoni et omnibus servis ejus, et universae terrae ejus. |
3. The great temptations which thine eyes have seen, the signs, and those great miracles; | 3. Probationes magnas quas viderunt oculi tui, signa et portenta ilia magna. |
4. Yet the Lord hath not given you an heart to perceive, and eyes to see, and ears to hear, unto this day. | 4. Neque dedit vobis Jehova cor ad intelligendum, et oculos ad ridendum, et aures ad audiendum usque in hunc diem. |
5. And I have led you forty years in the wilderness: your clothes are not waxen old upon you, and thy shoe is not waxen old upon thy foot. | 5. Et deduxi vos quadraginta annis per desertum: non inveteraverunt vestimenta vestra super vos, nec calceamentum vestrum veteravit super pedem vestrum. |
6. Ye have not eaten bread, neither have ye drunk wine or strong drink; that ye might know that I am the Lord your God. | 6. Panem non comedistis, neque vinum et siceram bibistis: ut intelligatis quod ego Jehova Deus vester. |
7. And when ye came unto this place, Sihon the king of Heshbon, and Og the king of Bashan, came out against us unto battle, and we smote them: | 7. Venistis tandem ad locum istum: egressusque est Sehon rex Esbon, et Og rex Basan in occursum nostrum ad praelium, et percussimus eos; |
8. And we took their land, and gave it for an inheritance unto the Reubenites, and to the Gadites, and to the half-tribe of Manasseh. | 8. Et abstulimus terram ipsorum, tradidimusque in haereditatem Rubenitis, et Gadiris, et dimidiae tribui Manasse. |
9. Keep therefore the words of this covenant, and do them, that ye may prosper in all that ye do. | 9. Custodiatis ergo verba pacti hujus et facite ea, ut (vel, intelligatis) prospere agatis in omnibus quae facturi estis. |
Deuteronomy 29:2 And Moses called unto all Israel. This passage also may be fitly referred to the preface of the Law, since its tendency is to recommend it, and to instruct and prepare the people’s minds to be teachable. It takes its commencement from the divine blessings, which they had experienced as well in their exodus as in their forty years’ wanderings; for it would have been the height of baseness and ingratitude not to devote themselves to a Deliverer who had dealt so graciously with them. And surely it was an inestimable sign of His paternal love towards them, that He should have arrayed Himself against so very powerful a king for His servants’ sake. Finally, lest there should be any question as to their deliverance, he enlarges upon the power which God displayed therein, in magnificent terms of praise according with its dignity.
Deuteronomy 29:4 Yet the Lord hath not given. By reproaching them with their past stupidity, he stirs up their desire for a better understanding, as if he had said, that they had been too long indifferent to so many miracles, and therefore they should no longer delay to rouse themselves, etc., to give greater heed to God; not because they had been so senseless that His acts had altogether escaped their notice, but because all acknowledgment of them had immediately come to an end. For, just as the drunken man, or one suffering from lethargy, when he hears a cry, raises his head for a moment, and opens his eyes, and then relapses into a state of torpor, so the people had never seriously applied their minds to consider God’s works; and when they had been aroused by some miracle, had immediately sunk back into forgetfulness, wherefore there is good cause why Moses should seek to awaken them from their dulness and stupidity by various methods. But he does not merely condemn their senselessness, and blindness, and deafness, but declares that they were thus senseless, and blind, and deaf, because they were not inspired with grace from above to profit duly by so many lessons. Thence we learn that a clear and powerful understanding is a special gift of the Spirit, since men are ever blind even in the brightest light, until they have been enlightened by God. What Moses relates of the Israelites, is unquestionably common to us all. He declares, then, that they were not induced by the conspicuous glory of God to fear and worship Him, because He had not given them either mind, or eyes, or ears. It is true that at man’s creation He had naturally bestowed upon him a mind, and ears, and eyes; but Moses means, that whatever innate light we have, is either hidden or lost, so that, as far as regards the highest point of wisdom, all our senses lie useless. True that in nature’s corruption, the light still shineth in darkness, but it is light which is soon obscured; therefore, the entire understanding and faculty of reason, in which men glory and pique themselves, is nought but smoke and darkness. Well then may David ask that his eyes may be opened to behold the secrets of the Law. 33 (<19B918>Psalm 119:18.) Still this defect by no means frees us from blame; because (as we are told) none have wisdom, but those to whom it is given by the Father of lights; for we are ignorant 34 through our own fault. Besides, every one is sufficiently, and more than sufficiently convicted by his own conscience, that his ignorance is closely connected with pride and indolence, and is therefore voluntary. The word heart is not here used for the seat of the affections, but for the mind itself, which is the intellectual faculty of the soul.
Deuteronomy 29:5 And I have led you. He descends to the blessings with which He had continually visited His people during the course of forty years. Yet he does not recount them all, but contents himself with a few of the most remarkable instances, viz., that their clothes had not been worn out by age, and that they had been fed from heaven, when no sustenance was to be obtained from the fruits of the earth. He reminds them that God’s glory had been manifested by these testimonies, in order that they might submit themselves to His rule.
Deuteronomy 29:7 And when ye came unto this place. This, a third instance (of God’s goodness), because He had smitten the first enemies, who encountered them to impede their passage, and thus had already begun to bring them into a place of rest. For inasmuch as the two tribes and a half had here chosen their home, they might behold as in a mirror that the possession of the promised land awaited them. Hence, then, Moses concludes that they were under obligation to keep the law, and exhorts them to shew their gratitude by faithful and sincere obedience. The object, therefore, of the recital is, to procure reverent attention to his doctrine; since the word lkç, 35 shakal, in Hiphil, means to act successfully as well as prudently. I have set down both readings, since they are alike suitable to the sense. For we have seen in chapter 4, that this was the people’s only wisdom to obey God’s statutes; nor was their prosperity to be expected from any other source except God’s blessing, which is everywhere promised to the Israelites, if they keep the law.
DEUTERONOMY 8
<050807>Deuteronomy 8:7-10
7. For the Lord thy God bringeth thee into a good land; a land of brooks of water, of fountains, and depths that spring out of valleys and hills; | 7. Quia Jehova Deus tuus introducit to in terram bonam, terram ubi torrentes, aquarum fontes, et abyssi erumpentes per valles et colles. |
8. A land of wheat, and barley, and vines, and fig-trees, and pomegranates; a land of oil-olive and honey; | 8. Terram frumenti, et hordei, vitis et ficus, et malogranati: terram oleae oliviferae, et mellis. |
9. A land wherein thou shalt eat bread without scarceness, thou shalt not lack any thing in it; a land whose stones are iron, and out of whose hills thou mayest dig brass. | 9. Terram in qua non comedes panem in penuria, nee ulla re indigebis: terram cujus lapides sunt ferrum, et e cujus montibus effodies aes. |
10. When thou hast eaten and art full, then thou shalt bless the Lord thy God for the good land which he hath given thee. A REPETITION OF THE SAME DECLARATION | 10. Comedes igitur, et satiaberis: et tunc benedices Jehovae Deo tuo in terra illa quam dedit tibi. |
<051110>Deuteronomy 11:10-12
10. For the land, whither thou goest in to possess it, is not as the land of Egypt, from whence ye came out, where thou sowedst thy seed, and wateredst it with thy foot, as a garden of herbs: | 10. Terra enim quam tu ingrederis ut possideas eam, non est sicut terra Aegypti, ex qua egressi estis, in qua seminabas semen tuum, et irrigabas pede tuo, ut hortum oleris. |
11. But the land, whither ye go to possess it, is a land of hills and valleys, and drinketh water of the rain of heaven: | 11. At terra ad quam vos transibitis ut possideatis eam, terra montium et vallium est: de pluvia coeli bibes aquam. |
12. A land which the Lord thy God careth for: the eyes of the Lord thy God are always upon it, from the beginning of the year, even unto the end of the year. | 12. Est terra quam Jehova Deus tuus requirit: semper sunt oculi Jehovae Dei tui in ca, a principio anni usque ad extremum anni. |
1. Now these are the commandments, the statutes, and the judgments, which the Lord your God commanded to teach you, that ye might do them in the land whither ye go to possess it; | 1. Istud autem est praeceptum, statuta et judicia quae praecepit Jehova Deus vester ut docerem vos, ut faciatis illa in terra ad quam vos transitis ut possideatis: |
2. That thou mightest fear the Lord thy God, to keep all his statutes, and his commandments, which I command thee; thou, and thy son, and thy son’s son, all the days of thy life, and that thy days may be prolonged. | 2. Ut timeas Jehovam Deum tuum, custodiendo omnia statuta ejus et praecepta ejus, quae ego praecipio tibi, tu et filius tuus, et filius tilii tui, omnibus diebus vitae tuae: et ut prolongentur dies tui. |
3. Hear therefore, O Israel, and observe to do it; that it may be well with thee, and that ye may increase mightily, as the Lord God of thy fathers hath promised thee, in the land that floweth with milk and honey. | 3. Audias ergo o Israel, et custodias ut facias, ut bene tibi sit, utque multiplicemini valde, quemadmodum dixit Jehova Deus patrum tuorum tibi in terra, quae fluit lacte et melee. |
17. Ye shall diligently keep the commandments of the Lord your God, and his testimonies, and his statutes, which he hath commanded thee. | 17. Custodiendo custodietis praecepta Jehovae, Dei vestri, et testimonia ejus, et statuta ejus quae praecepit tibi. |
18. And thou shalt do that which is right and good in the sight of the Lord; that it may be well with thee, and that thou mayest go in and possess the good land which the Lord sware unto thy fathers, | 18. Faciesque quod rectum et bonum est in oculis Jehovae, ut bene sit tibi, et ingrediaris possideasque terram bonam, quam juravit Jehova patribus tuis. |
19. To cast out all thine enemies from before thee, as the Lord hath spoken. | 19. Ut expellat omnes hostes tuos a facie tua, sieur loquutus est Jehova. |
Deuteronomy 8:7 For the Lord thy God. We may shortly sum up the words and the matter. He almost sets before their eyes a habitation full of wealth and various advantages, in order that they there may worship God more cheerfully, and study to repay by their gratitude so signal a benefit. In chapter 8 he commends the goodness of the land, because it is watered by the streams which flow through its valleys and mountains, and because it produces all kinds of fruits to supply them with nourishment; and not only so, but because it contains also mines of iron and brass. In chapter 11 he expresses the same thing more plainly and in greater detail, by the addition of a comparison with the land of Egypt; the fruitfulness of which, although it is marvellous from the yearly inundation of the Nile, and is renowned as an extraordinary miracle, yet requires much labor and cultivation, since it is irrigated by means of drains by the hand and industry of men. But the land of Canaan depends on God’s blessing, and waits for the rain from heaven. Moreover Moses extols in glowing words the peculiar privilege of the land, saying, that it is ever looked upon by God, in order that, on their part, the Israelites might attentively, and constantly also, look to Him. For this is the force of the words, “always, from the beginning of the year, even unto the end of the year;” as if he had said, that they would be ungrateful to God, unless they constantly and zealously directed their regards to Him, since He never ceased daily to look on them. It is true, indeed, that there is no corner of the earth which does not experience God’s blessing, witness the fact that the Nile fertilizes the whole of Egypt; but, because that only happens once a year, and since its waters are conducted hither and thither by drains artificially made by man, Moses, therefore, not improperly makes it the ground of his exhortation that they should constantly give themselves to meditation on the Law; for not only at a particular season of the year, but almost at every moment, their necessity would compel them to ask for God’s aid, when they saw that the land was ever requiring from Him the remedy of its dryness. The question however arises, how Moses could declare in such magnificent terms the richness of the land of Canaan, when now-adays it is scarcely counted among those that are fertile; and thus 36 the ungodly wantonly deride him, since all whom business or any other cause have taken there contradict his encomiums. Yet I do not doubt that it was always distinguished by the abundance of its various fruits, as we shall presently see in its proper place, where its fertility was proved by the bunch of grapes; but, at the same time, it is to be observed that its abundance was increased in a new and unwonted manner by the arrival of the people, that God might shew that He had blessed that country above all others for the liberal supply of His children. As long, therefore, as that land was granted as the inheritance of the race of Abraham, it was remarkable for that fertility which God had promised by Moses. But now, so far from wondering that it is to a great extent desert and barren, we ought rather to be surprised that some small vestiges of its ancient fruitfulness exist; since what God Himself had so often threatened against it must needs be fulfilled. The barrenness, therefore, of the land as it now appears, instead of derogating from the testimony of Moses, rather gives ocular demonstration of the judgment of God, which, as we shall see elsewhere, was denounced against it. In sum, as God for His people’s sake still further enriched a land already fruitful, so, for the punishment of the sins of this same people, He sowed it with salt, that it might afford a sad spectacle of His curse.
Deuteronomy 11:10 When thou hast eaten and art full. In these words he admonishes them that they would be too senseless, unless God’s great bounty should attract them to obedience, since nothing is more unreasonable, than, when we have eaten and are full, not to acknowledge from whence our food has come. Fitly, then, does Moses require gratitude from the people, when they shall enjoy both the land promised to them and an abundance of all good things.
DEUTERONOMY 6
Deuteronomy 6:1 Now these are the commandments. In these three verses he repeats what we have already seen in many previous passages; since God deals so liberally with the Israelites, they would be too perverse, unless such great kindness should allure them to love the law. We must remember too what I have already touched on, that, although I have postponed to another place the promises, whereby Moses urged the people to endeavor to keep the Law, still I have designedly put before my exposition of the Law those passages, in which, by setting the promised land as it were before the people’s eyes, he prepares their minds for submission, and renders the rule of so bountiful a Father pleasant and delightful. Since, then, they were appointed to inherit the land, Moses, when he invites them to its enjoyment, commands them gladly to embrace the doctrine, for the sake of which they were adopted; and to devote themselves, on their side, to obedience to God, by whose gratuitous goodness they had been prevented. As in chapters 8 and 11 he praised the richness of the land, so does he now confirm the same statement; or rather afterwards more fully explains what he slightly touches upon here. They all agree in this, that the happy state of life which was before their eyes ought to awaken the people’s gratitude, lest such notable beneficence should be expended on them in vain. Moses therefore declares, that he had presented to them laws and statutes, by which they might be instructed in the fear of God; at the same time, he reminds them how base in them it would be not to be ravished to the love of God and of His law by the delightfulness and abundance of the land. I pass over what I have already explained, viz., that he taught nothing of himself, but was the faithful interpreter of God; and also that he commands the doctrine to be handed down to their posterity, so that it may never be lost. Whence it appears how difficult it is for men to be duly prepared for keeping the law, since God does not in vain so often stimulate their indolence; for there is a silent reproof conveyed either of their indolence or instability, when God does not cease to insist on what it would have been sufficient to have pointed out in a single word. We must also remark the definition of righteousness, that they should do what is right in the sight of the Lord; in opposition to the reason and judgment of the flesh.
DEUTERONOMY 8
<050811>Deuteronomy 8:11-18
11. Beware that thou forget not the Lord thy God, in not keeping his commandments, and his judgments, and his statutes, which I command thee this day: | 11. Cave tibi ne obliviscaris Jehovae Dei tui, ut non observes praecepta ejus, et judicia ejus, et statuta ejus, quae ego praecipio tibi hodie. |
12. Lest when thou hast eaten and art full, and hast built goodly houses, and dwelt therein; | 12. Ne forte comedas et satureris, et domos egregias aedifices, atque habites in illis. |
13. And when thy herds and thy flocks multiply, and thy silver and thy gold is multiplied, and all that thou hast is multiplied; | 13. Et boves tui ovesque tuae multiplicentur, argentum quoque et aurum multiplicentur tibi: omne inquam quod est tibi multiplicetur; |
14. Then thine heart be lifted up, and thou forget the Lord thy God, which brought thee forth out of the land of Egypt, from the house of bondage; | 14. Tum elevetur cor tuum, et obliviscaris Jehovae Dei tui, qui eduxit to e terra Aegypti, e domo servorum: |
15. Who led thee through that great and terrible wilderness, wherein were fiery serpents, and scorpions, and drought, where there was no water; who brought thee forth water out of the rock of flint; | 15. Qui deduxit to per desertum magnum et terribile serpentis adurentis, et scorpionis, et sitis, in quo nulla erat aqua: qui eduxit tibi aquam e petra silicis: |
16. Who fed thee in the wilderness with manna, which thy fathers knew not; that he might humble thee, and that he might prove thee, to do thee good at thy latter end; | 16. Qui pavit to Man in deserto, quod non noverant patres tui: ut affligeret to, et probaret to, ut benefaceret tibi in novissimo tuo. |
17. And thou say in thine heart, My power, and the might of mine hand, hath gotten me this wealth. | 17. Ut dicas in corde tuo, Potentia mea et robur manus meae paravit mihi has opes. |
18. But thou shalt remember the Lord thy God: for it is he that giveth thee power to get wealth, that he may establish his covenant which he sware unto thy fathers, as it is this day. | 18. Sed memineris Jehovae Dei tui, quia ipse dat tibi facultatem ad parandas opes, ut confirmet pactum suum quod juravit patribus tuis, sicut in hoc die. |
20. Behold, I send an Angel before thee, to keep thee in the way, and to bring thee into the place which I have prepared. | 20. Ecce, ego mitre Angelum coram to, ut custodiat to in via, et introducat to in locum quem praeparavi. |
21. Beware of him, and obey his voice, provoke him not; for he will not pardon your transgressions: for my name is in him. | 21. Cave a facie ejus, (ad verbum, custodias to; vel custoditus sis,) et obtempera voci ejus, ne exacerbes eum, neque enim parcet transgressioni vestrae: nomen meum intra ipsum. |
22. But if thou shalt indeed obey his voice, and do all that I speak; then I will be an enemy unto thine enemies, and an adversary unto thine adversaries. | 22. Si autem audiendo audieris vocem ejus, et feceris omnia quae loquor, inimicus ere inimicis tuis, et affligam affligentes te. |
23. For mine Angel shall go before thee, and bring thee in unto the Amorites, and the Hittites, and the Perizzites, and the Canaanites, the Hivites, and the Jebusites; and I will cut them off. | 23. Nam praecedet Angelus meus faciem tuam, et introducet te ad Emorrhaeum, Hitthaeum, et Perezaeum, Chananaeum, Hivaeum, et Jebusaeum: et exterminabo illos. |
25. And ye shall serve the Lord your God, and he shall bless thy bread, and thy water; and I will take sickness away from the midst of thee. | 25. Coletis Jehovam Deum vestrum, et benedicet pani tuo, et aquis tuis: auferamque infirmitatem e medio tui. |
26. There shall nothing cast their young, nor be barren, in thy land: the number of thy days I will fulfill. | 26. Non erit abortum faciens et sterilis in terra tua: numerum dierum tuorum complebo. |
27. I will send my fear before thee, and will destroy all the people to whom thou shalt come; and I will make all thine enemies turn their backs unto thee. | 27. Terrorem mittam coram to, et interficiam omnem populum ad quem venies, et dabo omnes hostes tuos tergum. |
28. And I will send hornets before thee, which shall drive out the Hivite, the Canaanite, and the Hittite, from before thee. | 28. Mittam crabronem ante to, qui expellat Hivaeum, Chananaeum, et Hitthaeum a facie tua. |
29. I will not drive them out from before thee in one year; lest the land become desolate, and the beast of the field multiply against thee. | 29. Non ejiciam ilium a facie tua anno uno, ne sit terrae desolatio, et multiplicetur contra to bestia agri. |
30. By little and little I will drive them out from before thee, until thou be increased, and inherit the land. | 30. Paulatim paulatim ejiciam illum a facie tua, donec crescas et haereditate accipias terram. |
31. And I will set thy bounds from the Red sea even unto the sea of the Philistines, and from the desert unto the river: for I will deliver the inhabitants of the land into your hand; and thou shalt drive them out before thee. | 31. Ponam autem terminum tuum a mari rubro usque ad Philistin, et a deserto usque ad fluvium, ham dabo in manus vestras habitatores terrae. |
Deuteronomy 8:11 Beware that thou forget not. 37 We may easily estimable the necessity of this admonition from the common corruption of human nature, which is even yet only too general and too influential; for scarcely shall we find one person in a hundred in whom satiety does not generate headiness. Moses will hereafter speak in his Song of the rebelliousness of this people, 38
“The beloved, (Jeshurun,) waxen fat, and grown thick, kicked.” (Deuteronomy 32:15.)
It was needful, then, that a restraint should be put on such refractory beings, nay, that they should have their wantonness still more tightly repressed in their prosperity. But we may, and it is well to, extend this doctrine to ourselves also, since prosperity intoxicates almost all of us, so that we intemperately grow wanton against God, and forget ourselves and Him. Therefore Moses not only commands the Israelites not to be ungrateful to God, but warns them to guard themselves (for he uses this word for to beware) from that impious ingratitude. He immediately after uses this same word for the keeping of the Law. But this is the sum, that they needed the utmost care and attention to beware lest forgetfulness of God should steal over them in happy circumstances, and thus they should shake off His fear, and cast away His yoke, and indulge themselves in the lusts of their flesh. For he shews that contempt of the Law would be a token of ingratitude; because it could not be but that they would submit themselves to God, and keep His Law, if they only reflected that it was to nothing but His blessing that they owed their prosperity. We have already observed elsewhere that his designation of the Law by various terms amounts to a commendation of its perfect doctrine; as much as to say, that no part of right conduct is omitted in it. He also asserts here (as often elsewhere) the faithfulness of his ministry, lest they should shufflingly contend that, whilst they refuse the commands of a mortal man, they are not therefore rebellious against God. He says, then, that their piety will not be acceptable to God, unless they keep the Law propounded by Him.
Deuteronomy 8:12 Lest when thou hast eaten and art full. He more fully explains what we have already observed, viz., that it might happen, in the gradual course of time, that they should fail in their fear of God and honor for His Law, and therefore should take the greater care lest continual peace and joy should bring this callousness upon them. We should diligently remark the cause of departure which he points out, viz., the pride whereby riches and abundance ordinarily puff up men’s minds. The examples of moderation in prosperity are rare; rather, as soon as men perceive themselves to be in a flourishing estate, they begin to swell with arrogance, and so admire their exaltation that they despise even God Himself. On this ground Paul charges
“the rich in this world that they be not high-minded, nor trust in uncertain riches.” (1 Timothy 6:17.)
We ought., indeed, the more kindly we are dealt with by God, to submit ourselves the more meekly to His rule; but, as I have said, the depravity of our nature hurries us quite the other way, so that we grow insolent under God’s indulgence, which should bend us to submission. And if this does not happen immediately, yet whenever prosperity flows on uninterruptedly, its delights gradually corrupt even the best of us, so that they at last degenerate from themselves. If, then, we desire to steer a straight course, we ought to strive after the healing of this most deadly disease of pride. Again, since by the wiles of Satan continued prosperity softens and ensnares us, let us learn to beware not only for a day, but to keep watch through the whole course of our lives. Moses wisely anticipates their pride by recalling to the Israelites’ recollection what was their original condition. For whence does it arise that those who seem to themselves and others to be happy in the world are puffed up with selfconfidence and pride, except because they reflect not on their origin, but despise all but themselves, just as if they had come down from the clouds? For there are few like Codrus, who, after gaining a kingdom, always ingenuously confessed that his father had been a potter. God here presents a remedy to this vice, (which reigns too extensively,) by representing to the Israelites their former state, and commanding them to reflect that they were rescued from it by His especial blessing. Nothing but the recollection of their deliverance could tame their arrogance; for what could be more unreasonable than that they should be insolent who were formerly the slaves of a most haughty nation, and who had not acquired their liberty by their own efforts, but contrary to their hope and deserts had obtained it by God’s mere favor, who then had wandered in exile through the wilderness, and at length, under God’s guidance, had entered the land promised them? In a word, God deals with them just as if one should reproach a man (who, having become suddenly rich, bore himself intemperately) with his former beggary and want. Moreover, since they were too slow of heart to receive this admonition promptly and cheerfully, Moses enlarges on the Divine benefits which they had experienced in the wilderness. For this was incredible, that this mixed multitude of men, and women, and children, and slaves should have lived so many years, not only amongst wild beasts, but amongst scorpions and vipers, and all that is most venomous in the serpent tribe. God’s goodness shone forth, too, still more brightly in that sudden miracle whereby He supplied water to them in their thirst from what was before an and rock. 39 But since he reminds them in the next verse how they had manna for their bread or food, I will join these two things together.
Deuteronomy 8:16 Who fed thee in the wilderness. He had said that water was brought forth from the rock of flint when the people were suffering from thirst; now, he adds that they had manna instead of bread; as if he had said that when meat and drink failed them they must have perished of want unless God had preternaturally given them both, causing the hard rock to flow down in water, and sending bread from heaven. Moreover he repeats what he had said before, that the people were afflicted with this need as a trial of their faith and patience; yet in this trial both their incredulity and intemperance were discovered, whilst God’s goodness and power were eventually more clearly displayed, since He pardoned their ingratitude, and, notwithstanding it, aided their necessity. For if they had not suffered from hunger, God’s bounty in supplying them with their daily food would have been neglectfully received. This is the meaning of the conclusion, “to do thee good at thy latter end.” From which words let us also learn that we are often deprived of our necessary supplies, in order that our senses may awaken to acknowledge God’s aid which appears in our extremity. For whilst abundance covers our eyes with a veil, or dims their sight, so, on the other hand, deprivation and want purge and remove this dimness that we may more clearly perceive the benefits afforded us by God.
Deuteronomy 8:17 And thou say in, thy heart. He describes that kind of pride of which we have lately spoken, viz., when men attribute to their own industry, or labor, or foresight, what they ought to refer to the blessing of God. It has indeed been said, that our hearts are uplifted in other ways also; but this is the principal ground of pride, to assume and assign to ourselves what belongs to God. For nothing so greatly confines us within the boundaries of humility and modesty as the acknowledgment of God’s grace; for it is madness and temerity to raise our crests against Him on whom we depend, and to whom we owe ourselves and all we possess. Rightly, then, does Moses reprove the pride of the human heart which arises from forgetfulness of God, if they think that they have gained by their own exertions (marte suo) what God has given them of His own pleasure, in order to lay them under obligation to Himself. “To say in the heart,” is a Hebraism for thinking in one’s self, or reflecting in one’s self. He does not, therefore, only require the outward expression of the lips, whereby men profess that they are grateful to God’s bounty, (for in this there is often nothing more than hypocrisy and vanity;) but he would have them seriously persuaded that whatever they possess is derived from His sheer beneficence. He has already said, that although when they entered the land they would be fed with bread and other foods, still the manna wherewith God had supported them in the wilderness would be a perpetual proof that man is not sustained by bread only, but by the secret virtue of God, which inspires the principle of life. Another lesson is now added, viz., that because God formerly fed and clothed them gratuitously, and without any act of their own, they thence are taught that, even whilst they strenuously labor and strive, whatever they acquire is not so much the reward of their own industry as the fruit of God’s blessing. For he not only affirms that at their first entrance into the land they were enriched, because God dealt with them liberally, but He extends this to the whole course of human life, that men obtain nothing by their own vigilance and diligence, except in so far as God blesses them from above. And this he more fully explains immediately afterwards, where he commands them to remember therefore that “it is God who giveth them power,” etc. For although God would not have us slumber in inactivity, yet what Paul says of the preaching of the Gospel, 40 holds good also in the most trifling matters, viz., that “neither is he that planteth anything, neither he that watereth,” but all things are in the power of God, by whose only influence it is that the earth brings forth fruit. (1 Corinthians 3:7.) We must then recollect that although God reproves man’s slothfulness, and punishes it with want and hunger, still they who are active in labor do not get wealth by their own diligence, but by the blessing of God alone. On this doctrine the prayer which Christ dictated to us is founded, in which we ask to have our daily bread given us. But although this relates alike to all mankind, yet Moses appropriates it especially to God’s chosen people, in whom God’s blessing shines forth most brightly, and at the same time admonishes them that the fact of His supplying them with food depends on the covenant whereby He adopted the race of Abraham to Himself.
Only; at least; surely. — Nold. Concord. partic. — W. ↩
“In the day,” etc. — lat. ↩
Ce chef-d’-oeuvre unique. — Fr. ↩
Addition in the Fr., “Si quelqu’un aime mieux prendre le nombre singulier pour le pluriel, lors le sens sera tel: Combien que tous peuples fussent pareils, ou d’estat indifferent quant a leur nature, neantmoins que Dieu en a pris un d’entre tousles autres;” if any should prefer taking the singular number instead of the plural, then the sense will be, Although all people were equal, or of the same condition by nature, nevertheless God chose out one of them from amongst all the others. ↩
Conglutinatus est. — V. ↩
Thou hast exalted, etc. — Lat. ↩
Addition in Fr., “qu’il a apprinse de Dieu;” which they have learnt of God. ↩
La doctrine. — Fr. ↩
Margin of A.V., to whet, or sharpen. — W. ↩
A tous joyaux, affiquets, et parures. — Fr. ↩
C’est de renouveler aux enfans d’Israel la pensee, qu ils devoyent avoir de s’enquerir de sa volonte;” to renew in the children of Israel the care they ought to have in inquiring as to His will. — Fr. ↩
En chartes authentiques. — Fr. ↩
Larvati. — Lat. Les Eveques comus et masquez. — Fr. ↩
“Congregando,” by congregating. — Lat. There is much abridgment of the passage in the French. ↩
lhqh. The form is strictly that of the imperative Hiphil, whilst the infinitive of the same voice is properly lyhqh, as seen in Numbers 10:7, though its yod might be changed into a tzere, in which case the form of these two different tenses would be identical. — W. ↩
L’audace du Pape et de son clerge. — Fr. ↩
Added from the French. ↩
Margin of A. V. ↩
Or, more fully in Numbers 13:33. ↩
“Qui avoyent este envoyez pour descouvrir la terre;” who had been sent to descry the land. — Fr. ↩
De prime face. — Fr. ↩
“Pour ce que, se cognoissans povres et miserables, ils devoyent aisement conclurre,” etc.; because, knowing themselves to be poor and miserable, they might easily conclude, etc. — Fr. ↩
L’heritage celeste, et permanent. — Fr. ↩
Pour se bien examiner. — Fr. ↩
Added from the French. ↩
D’un si petit hombre des gens. — Fr. ↩
trmçm. A. V., charge. The LXX. keeps closest to the Hebrew idiom, ↩
Tellement que tont le reste va son train. — Fr. ↩
rswm. S.M. has rendered this word castigatio. V., disciplina. The root is rsy; and both the root and noun meaning to correct and correction, will sometimes mean to chastise, etc. — W. ↩
See Calvin Society Translation, in loco. ↩
See note on Deuteronomy 11:2, ante, p. 383. ↩
The references here are to Psalm 19:13, and 18:24, (in the Fr. 14.) There may be allusion to 19:12, and 18:28. See Calvin’s comments on these passages. ↩
“Desipimus.” — Lat. “Ainsi hebetez, et desprouvez de sens.” — Fr. ↩
wlykçt; A. V., that ye may prosper. S.M., ut prudenter agatis; but he adds, the Hebrews, explain this word by wjylxh, “that ye may prosper.” The Hiphil of lkç, says Simon’s Lexicon, is to act prudently, and by a metonymy of the antecedent for the consequent, to proceed prosperously. — W. ↩
“Des esprits phrenetiques, and profanes.” — Fr. This ancient scoff, repeated by Voltaire and other modern infidels, is well met by Dr. Keith, “Evidences of Prophecy, (Art. Judaea,)” by quotations not only from Tacitus, Ammianus Marcellinus, Florus, and Pliny the Elder, but from Volney and Gibbon themselves, as well as more friendly witnesses. ↩
Take heed to thyself. — Lat. ↩
“LXX. autem pro eo (Jeshurun) substituerunt ὀ ἠγαπημένος, et V. imitatur per suum Dilectus. Unde autem sit illa versio, vix explicari video; fatente etiam Steucho, se nescire a quo verbo id nomen duct possit si Dilectum significat,” etc. — Marckius on Deuteronomy 32: C.’s own translation of the word is Rectus. ↩
The following sentence is omitted in the French. ↩
A parenthesis is here added in the Fr., (“selon qu’il est prins de la similitude des laboureurs;”) as it. is taken from the similitude of laborers. ↩
